News: Microelectronics
27 March 2024
Wolfspeed tops out construction of John Palmour Manufacturing Center for Silicon Carbide
Wolfspeed Inc of Durham, NC, USA — which makes silicon carbide (SiC) materials and power semiconductor devices — hosted Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) and other local officials, community partners and employees at a ‘last beam’ ceremony to celebrate the topping out of construction at the $5bn John Palmour Manufacturing Center for Silicon Carbide, located in Siler City, Chatham County, NC. By the end of 2024, phase one of construction is expected to be completed on the 445-acre site.
Picture: Senator Thom Tillis joined Wolfspeed’s president & CEO Gregg Lowe in signing the ceremonial ‘last beam’ at the Topping Out ceremony for The John Palmour Manufacturing Center for Silicon Carbide.
The JP will “unlock significant benefits for our local community by growing the state’s economy by more than $17.5bn over the next two decades and creating 1800 good-paying jobs by 2030,” says Wolfspeed’s president & CEO Gregg Lowe.
The JP represents a total investment of $5bn, complemented by public and private support, to help accelerate the transition from silicon to silicon carbide and ramp up supply of this material recently deemed as critical to the energy transition by the US Department of Energy.
“I was proud to vote in favor of the CHIPS and Science Act, which provides critical support for domestic semiconductor manufacturing, and I applaud Wolfspeed’s commitment to developing technology here in North Carolina that supports our national security and economic interests,” says Senator Tillis.
The JP will primarily produce 200mm silicon carbide wafers (1.7x larger than 150mm wafers), significantly expanding Wolfspeed’s materials capacity and translating to more efficient wafers and ultimately, lower costs. Wolfspeed already produces more than 60% of the world’s silicon carbide materials at its Durham, NC headquarters, and is engaged in a $6.5bn capacity expansion effort to dramatically increase production. The JP’s ramp-up will support recently signed customer agreements with Renesas, Infineon and others, while driving meaningful progress towards Wolfspeed’s long-term growth strategy.
Wolfspeed says that the JP underpins its vision of accelerating the adoption of silicon carbide semiconductors across a wide array of end-markets and unlocking a new era of energy efficiency.
Wolfspeed’s quarterly revenue grows 20% year-on-year, as design-wins hit a record $2.9bn
