Chipmaker Wolfspeed plans to invest up to $2.5 billion in federal funds, private investment and federal tax credits to expand its silicon carbide manufacturing facility in Marcy and materials manufacturing facility in North Carolina, the federal government and the company say. Officials made the announcement earlier this week.
“This will turn the I-90 corridor into America’s semiconductor superhighway,” Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said during a Zoom press conference Tuesday announcing the funding. “One in four chips manufactured in the United States will be manufactured within a few miles of Interstate 90, from Albany to Utica to Syracuse to Rochester to Buffalo.”
And that’s good economic news for the Mohawk Valley, local officials agreed.
“This transformative investment will foster hundreds of good-paying jobs in Oneida County and further elevate our region as a leader in semiconductor production,” Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente Jr. said in a statement. said. “As Wolfspeed strengthens its capabilities, we look forward to the opportunities this will bring to our employees and our future in the Mohawk Valley.”
And the benefits of Wolfspeed’s growth aren’t just financial, Schumer said. Manufacturing these chips in the United States, where many critical technologies depend on them, is also a security issue, he said.
“Wolfspeed is at the forefront of bringing semiconductor manufacturing back to America,” Schumer said during a Zoom press conference. “And the Mohawk Valley will be at the heart of guiding that effort.”
About Wolfspeed
Wolfspeed’s manufacturing facility at Mercy NanoCenter, which opened in 2022, is the world’s first facility to produce chips on 200mm silicon carbide wafers. Most chip manufacturers use silicon wafers, but silicon carbide’s higher efficiency makes it useful for high-power applications.
Silicon carbide first gained attention in electric vehicles, but it is now being used in many more applications, including artificial intelligence data centers, solar and wind energy, and military applications related to national security.
Wolfspeed is building a silicon carbide John Palmore manufacturing center in Siler City, North Carolina, where it is operating its first 200mm silicon carbide crystal furnace, Wolfspeed announced in June. The facility will produce silicon carbide wafers, which are thin slices of semiconductors.
“What’s happening in North Carolina is also important to New York because all the wafers that are made in North Carolina are sent here to be processed at Mercy,” Schumer said.
about money
According to a joint announcement Tuesday between Wolfspeed and the U.S. Department of Commerce, as well as a separate announcement from Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), funding to fuel Wolfspeed’s even more rapid growth will be It comes from one source.
Wolfspeed and the U.S. Department of Commerce have signed a non-binding preliminary memorandum for Wolfspeed to receive up to $750 million in federal funding through the federal CHIPS and Science Act. Mr. Schumer authored and sponsored the bipartisan bill, leading to its passage in 2022. The agreement enabled Wolfspeed to secure $750 million in private funding from a consortium of investment funds led by Apollo, Baupost Group, Fidelity Management & Research Company, and Capital Group. Wolfspeed plans to use advanced manufacturing tax credits under the CHIPS and Science Act to obtain nearly $1 billion in cash tax refunds related to construction, expansion and equipment installations in North Carolina and Mercy.
“This support will help us expand domestic manufacturing, accelerate innovation in next-generation semiconductor technology, and help meet the growing global demand for silicon carbide,” Wolfspeed CEO Greg Lowe said in a statement. “It will strengthen our capabilities.” “As a major player in the semiconductor industry, this proposed investment solidifies our leadership position with a first-of-its-kind 200mm silicon carbide manufacturing facility in upstate New York and central North Carolina. and the resilience of the semiconductor industry and the competitiveness of the U.S. supply chain.
“This isn’t just about growth for Wolfspeed; it’s about driving the advances in technology that will power the future.”
Wolfspeed’s Marcy expansion is expected to cost approximately $790 million and increase the plant’s production capacity by 30%. According to information from Schumer’s office, the tax credits will pay for very expensive, state-of-the-art equipment needed for this expansion, including photolithography tools, ion implanters, metal deposition tools, etch systems, and automation equipment. It is said to be useful.
“Upstate New York’s manufacturing revitalization continues today,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement. “Today, technology produced at Mercy is powering electric vehicles, the 5G revolution, industrial products, and helping us achieve our nation’s leading sustainability goals. With Wolfspeed as an anchor, my administration is FAST NY By investing in shovel readiness through the program, we are bringing even more innovative and cutting-edge companies to the Mohawk Valley.
promise of work
State and local officials announced in 2019 that Wolfspeed, then known as Cree, would build a manufacturing facility at Mercy NanoCenter. The state provided the company with a $500 million capital grant in exchange for a $1 billion investment, a $30 million commitment for research and development, and a promise to create 614 jobs over eight years.
Estimates at the time were that Wolfspeed would employ 350 people in 2024, its second year in business, said Shauna Papale, acting president of Mohawk Valley EDGE. But Wolfspeed told MV EDGE that Mercy already has more than 500 employees and expects to reach 600 well before the originally anticipated date of 2028.
“This type of growth will significantly increase the amount of chips manufactured here in New York State and will further leverage our local universities to provide career paths in semiconductor and advanced manufacturing.” she said. “This has been a true collaboration between local, county, state and federal partners over the years to get us to where we are today.
“Senator Schumer’s vision to build a semiconductor corridor from Buffalo to Albany is now more realistic thanks to this investment through CHIPS and the Science Act.”
CHIPS, About Science
Schumer had upstate New York in mind when crafting the bill, but he also had in mind Wolfspeed and Mercy, which he called his “North Star,” Schumer said at a press conference. mentioned in.
He said he consulted with Wolfspeed officials during the drafting of the bill and was told the company needed investment tax credits to expand its business in the Mohawk Valley.
“So one of the reasons I included provisions like the ITC in the CHIPS and science bill was because I knew it would provide companies like Wolfspeed with the investment they needed to grow in New York. ” he said. Advanced chip machinery will be found in places like Mercy, not overseas. ”
Investments like the ones Wolfspeed and other semiconductor companies are making in the Mohawk Valley and other parts of upstate New York will change the dynamics of the region, Schumer said.
“As we know, for too long our parents and grandparents have dropped their kids off at Syracuse or elsewhere and waved goodbye, because the kids… “I’ve grown and I want to stay because I couldn’t find a good job in Utica or Syracuse or wherever they went.” Schumer said at a news conference.
“But now that’s starting to reverse. Not only are there plenty of well-paying jobs for locals, but there are also so many people from other places saying goodbye to their parents at the airport and flying to the Mohican Valley. There will be a boom. And in the heart of New York.”
Other northern state companies
Wolfspeed isn’t the only high-tech company in upstate New York to benefit from CHIPS and the Science Act. Mr. Schumer announced last week that Edwards Vacuum Co., based in Western New York, had signed a preliminary memorandum of understanding under the act for a new dry pump manufacturing facility costing more than $300 million for the semiconductor industry. This facility is the first of its kind in this country.
Micron, which is building a manufacturing facility in Clay, reached a $6.1 billion funding agreement with the federal government earlier this year under the act. GlobalFoundries also agreed to provide $1.5 billion in financing to expand and build a second computer chip factory in Malta.
All about Mercy’s Wolfspeed: What you need to know about Wolfspeed and its $1 billion facility in upstate New York
For more information on the arrival of Wolfspeed, please visit Wolfspeed. Millions of dollars in state aid pave the way for shovel-ready Mercy NanoCenter
These companies and their investments, and the synergies between Wolfspeed and other upstate-based semiconductor companies, are a dynamic that will also attract other advanced manufacturing companies to the upstate and create a secure, high-tech economic future for the region. Schumer said.
“There’s a lot of money coming into our economy, which is great, great news,” he said. “Wolfspeed is building America’s future right here in the Mohawk Valley. From Utica to Rome to central New York, everyone today knows that this community is building the future of our country and the most advanced chips in the entire world. You can smile knowing that you are getting noticed as a builder.
“This is just the beginning. Great days are ahead for Wolfspeed, for Oneida County, for the Mohawk Valley, and for the entire northern part of the state.”
