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| Photo Credit: AP. |
(AP) - Micron will invest $15 billion though the end of the decade on a new semiconductor plant in its hometown that the chipmaker said will create 17,000 American jobs.
Sanjay
Mehrotra, president and CEO of Boise, Idaho-based Micron, said his company’s
investment was made possible by last month’s passage of the CHIPS and Science
ACT of 2022, a $280 billion bill aimed at bolstering U.S. competitiveness
against China and avoiding another chip shortage like the one that derailed the
auto and tech industries during the pandemic.
The CHIPS
law sets aside $52 billion to bolster the semiconductor industry, which due to
COVID-related supply chain constraints beginning in 2020, has struggled to
manufacture the diminutive chips that power everything from smartphones to
computers to automobiles.
“Our new
leading-edge memory manufacturing fab will fuel U.S. technology leadership,
ensuring a reliable domestic supply of semiconductors that is critical to
economic and national security,” Mehrotra said.
Micron said
locating the manufacturing plant at the company’s operational headquarter will
improve efficiency and help get products to market faster.
Boise Mayor
Lauren McLean said the partnership will help the city’s economy grow and
attract and diverse workforce.
“This is a once in a generation investment in
Boise from a home-grown company that is critical to the economic vitality of
our community, our state and our nation,” McLean wrote on Twitter.
McLean and
Mehrotra last month attended President Biden’s bill signing ceremony for the
CHIPS and Science Act. Idaho’s entire congressional delegation, all
Republicans, voted against it.
Biden called
the Micron announcement “another big win for America.”
Micron is
one of Idaho’s largest employers. The company has several chip manufacturing
plants around the world, including in Singapore and Taiwan.
Last week,
the chipmaker Intel Corp. announced that it would break ground Sept. 9 on its
planned $20 billion Ohio semiconductor facilities. The factories, known as
fabs, are expected to open in 2025. President Biden is scheduled to attend the
groundbreaking.
Rebecca
Boone contributed from Boise, Idaho.