Intel may acquire Tower Semiconductor for $6 billion
Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger announced the “IDM 2.0” strategy in March last year, one of which is to create a world-class Intel foundry service. If Intel only relies on its own investment, it is difficult to rapidly expand production capacity in a short period of time. According to TomsHardware reports, Intel is currently negotiating with Tower Semiconductor, hoping to acquire it for $6 billion to strengthen its foundry business.
Tower Semiconductor is a foundry from Israel with one 300mm fab, five 200mm fabs, and one 150mm fab. Among them, the 300mm fab is located in Japan and is jointly owned by Tower Semiconductor (51%) and Nuvoton (49%); of the five 200mm fabs, there are two each in Japan and the United States, and one is in Israel; the 150mm fab is also located in Israel. It mainly produces various types of chips, including analog, sensor, MEMS, mixed-signal, RFCMOS, and PMIC, with special process technologies such as BiCMOS, SiGe, and SOI. Although the technology is not the latest and most advanced, the business is usually very stable and the product life cycle is relatively long.
Specialized foundries like Tower Semiconductor do not require a huge investment in research and development. It is understood that Intel also takes a fancy to Tower Semiconductor’s rich experience and customer relationships in the industry. After the acquisition, Tower Semiconductor will not only allow Intel’s foundry services to cover a wider range but also have more customer groups. Recently, Intel has sought to acquire other fabs more than once. It was reported last year that Intel had planned to acquire GlobalFoundries for $30 billion.
