Intel Seeks $10 Billion Boost from CHIPS Act

During the global live event in 2021 themed Intel Ignition: Engineering the Future, CEO Pat Gelsinger announced the rollout of the “IDM 2.0” strategy. This strategy encompasses a trifecta of initiatives: a global network of internal factories focused on large-scale manufacturing, an expansion in the use of third-party foundry capacities, and the establishment of world-class Intel Foundry Services (IFS). Following this, Intel began a massive expansion of its production capabilities, partly fueled by subsidies from local governments, such as those afforded by the United States’ “CHIPs Act” and Department of Defense projects.

According to media reports, Intel is vying for over $10 billion in subsidies. If granted, it would become the largest beneficiary of the U.S. “CHIPs Act.” Intel’s potential financial arrangement includes loans and direct grants, with the specific allocation still under negotiation, forming part of the “CHIPs Act’s” $39 billion in direct grants and $75 billion in loans and guarantees.

Since 2021, Intel has been engaged in several new projects across the United States, including in Arizona, the Fab 52 and Fab 62 facilities, which will utilize the Intel 20A process technology for chip manufacturing, with an investment of $20 billion, expected to be operational by 2024; two wafer fabrication plants in Ohio employing the Intel 18A/20A process, also with a projected investment of $20 billion, aiming to commence mass production by 2025, with the completion of the entire project potentially exceeding $100 billion; and in New Mexico’s Rio Rancho, the Fab 9 factory dedicated to advanced semiconductor packaging technologies, with an investment of $3.5 billion, which began operations last month.

The U.S. Department of Commerce has already allocated smaller “CHIPs Act” grants to certain companies, with plans to announce more substantive details in the coming months.