Micron, the largest memory manufacturer in the United States, is expected to receive over USD 6 billion in funding from the Department of Commerce to assist with the costs of local factory projects, as part of efforts to bring semiconductor production back to U.S. soil.
According to a report from Bloomberg, sources revealed that the funding has not been finalized yet and could be announced as soon as next week. It is still unclear whether Micron plans to seek further loans through the “Chip Act” in addition to direct funding.
Micron Technology, the U.S. Department of Commerce, and representatives from the White House all declined to comment on the reported funding.
The U.S. “Chip Act” provides semiconductor companies with USD 39 billion in direct funding and USD 75 billion in loans and loan guarantees to revitalize the U.S. semiconductor manufacturing industry, which has shifted production to Asia over the past few decades. U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo stated that approximately USD 28 billion of this funding will be allocated towards advanced manufacturing processes.
So far, the Department of Commerce has announced six grants, with three provided to established semiconductor companies. Specifically, TSMC received USD 6.6 billion USD, Samsung received USD 6.4 billion, and Intel received USD 8.5 billion.
As per the same report from Bloomberg, Micron has committed to building up to four factories in New York and one in Idaho. However, Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra emphasized in March that these plans require Micron to obtain sufficient chip subsidies, investment tax credits, and incentives to address the cost differentials compared to expanding overseas.
Raimondo previously stated that the Department of Commerce will prioritize funding projects that commence before 2030. Per to previous documents from Micron cited by Bloomberg, among the four planned factories in New York, only two new factories may meet this requirement, with the other two not expected to start operations until 2041. Insiders suggest that this could mean that Micron’s subsidies may only support the first two factories in New York.
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