News: Suppliers
24 July 2024
GlobalWafers assigned $400m CHIPS Act funding to boost onshore wafer manufacturing in USA
The US Department of Commerce has signed a non-binding preliminary memorandum of terms (PMT) to provide GlobalWafers America LLC and MEMC LLC (subsidiaries of GlobalWafers Co Ltd of Hsinchu, Taiwan, the world’s third largest supplier of semiconductor wafers) up to $400m in proposed direct funding under the CHIPS and Science Act to help onshore critical semiconductor wafer production.
Currently, just five companies, including GlobalWafers, hold over 80% of the global 300mm silicon wafer manufacturing market, and about 90% of silicon wafers are sourced from East Asia.
The proposed CHIPS investment would support the construction of new wafer manufacturing facilities and the creation of 1700 construction jobs and 880 manufacturing jobs, and support projects with total capital expenditures of about $4bn across Texas and Missouri.
“GlobalWafers will play a crucial role in bolstering America’s semiconductor supply chain by providing a domestic source of silicon wafers,” says US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo.
The proposed funding would involve GlobalWafers building and expanding facilities in:
- Sherman, Texas: Establish the first 300mm silicon wafer manufacturing facility for advanced chips in the USA.
- St. Peters, Missouri: Establish a facility to produce 300mm silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafers.
Further, GlobalWafers plans to convert part of its existing silicon epitaxy wafer manufacturing facility in Sherman, Texas to silicon carbide (SiC) epitaxy wafer manufacturing, producing 150mm and 200mm SiC epitaxy wafers.
Supporting the development of a local semiconductor workforce in Texas, GlobalWafers is a member of the Southern Methodist University-led Texoma Tech Hub and is involved in the North Texas Semiconductor Workforce Development Consortium led by the University of Texas Dallas. GlobalWafers is also part of a partnership with Sherman High School, Denison High School, and Grayson College to establish an electronics lab at the schools that provide targeted training towards technician certifications required for new hires in the semiconductor industry.
Likewise, in St. Peters, MEMC is developing an apprenticeship program for Maintenance Technicians with the National Institute for Industry and Career Advancement (NIICA) and local high schools. Further, MEMC is collaborating with St. Charles Community College on a program named MegaTech, which supports dual-enrolled high school students as they step into careers involving advanced manufacturing and automation.
The amount of the award is subject to due diligence and negotiation of award documents and is conditional on the achievement of certain milestones.
