The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) has finalized direct funding through the CHIPS and Science Act with two companies and has come to agreements with three other companies for preliminary funding as it continues to push for the revitalization of domestic semiconductor manufacturing.
The CHIPS Act was signed to help strengthen the semiconductor supply chain to make it more resilient by expanding where chips are made beyond Asia, where chip manufacturing is currently aggregated. Additionally, the Act will help to create jobs, boost economic growth and help national security.
According to the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), there are 90 new projects across 28 states that have been announced since the creation of the CHIPS Act. This totals hundreds of billions of dollars in private investments in addition to the tens of billions in direct funding through the U.S. government.
The companies finalizing funding include:
- SkyWater Technology Foundry Inc.
- Coherent
- X-Fab
- Absolics
- Entegris
“These CHIPS incentives will strengthen the domestic semiconductor supply chain, create jobs, and reinforce America’s economic and national security,” said John Neuffer, president and CEO of the SIA, which represents 99% of chip companies in the U.S. and nearly two-thirds of non-U.S. chip firms.
Finalized funding
The $75 million incentives for Absolics will support the construction of a 120,00 square-foot facility in Georgia and the development of substrates used in chip packaging.
Entegris’ $75 million direct funding will be used to support the construction of a Colorado facility for advanced materials handling (AMH) and microcontamination control (MC) used to transport and protect silicon wafers during the semiconductor manufacturing.
New funding
Among the three companies receiving preliminary agreements with the DOC, all will support expansion of facilities or the construction of new chip facilities.
SkyWater will receive up to $16 million in direct funding for a new facility in Indiana as well as the modernization of an existing facility in Bloomington, Minnesota.
Coherent, which secured a silicon carbide (SiC) deal with Japanese giant Denso, will use its $33 million in CHIPS Act direct funding on the expansion and modernization of the company’s existing facility in Sherman, Texas, which will support up to 70 direct jobs.
Finally, X-Fab will receive up to $50 million in proposed direct funding for the modernization and expansion of its existing SiC fab in Lubbock, Texas.
“By investing in semiconductor manufacturing, we are helping secure this vulnerable supply chain, boosting our national security and global competitiveness, and creating new jobs for Texans,” said John Cornyn, U.S. Senator in Texas. “The chipmaking capabilities these resources will enable at X-Fab Texas will help the U.S. reclaim its leadership role in the critically important semiconductor industry, and I look forward to seeing more Texas-led advancements in the years to come.”
This round of funding supports wide bandgap semiconductors — such as SiC and gallium nitride (GaN) chips — that are used to provide more efficient power for applications like:
- Electric vehicles
- Renewable energy
- Consumer electronics
- Artificial intelligence
Earlier this year, the DOC came to preliminary CHIPS Act funding with Wolfspeed, a manufacturer of wide bandgap chips, to help the construction of the John Palmour center, an SiC fab, and the expansion of Wolfspeed’s Marcy, New York, facility.
