Today, as part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Invest in America plan, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced up to $123 million in direct funding to Polar Semiconductor (Polar) as the first award under the CHIPS Incentive Program’s Commercial Manufacturing Facility Funding Opportunity. The award follows a previously signed tentative term memorandum and completion of Commerce’s due diligence. The award will expand and modernize the company’s manufacturing facility in Bloomington, Minnesota. Commerce will distribute funds based on Polar’s completion of project milestones.
“Semiconductors are tiny chips smaller than your fingertip that power everything from smartphones to cars to satellites to weapons systems. I signed the CHIPS and SCIENCE Act to reinvigorate American leadership in semiconductors, strengthen our supply chain, protect our national security, and boost American competitiveness. And in the last three and a half years, we’ve done just that, spurring more than $400 billion in private investment in semiconductors and electronics and creating more than 115,000 construction and manufacturing jobs. This year alone, the United States is on pace to invest more in electronics manufacturing construction than in the past 24 years combined,” said President Joe Biden. “Today’s announcement that the Department of Commerce has finalized the first commercial CHIPS incentive award with Polar Semiconductor marks the next step in implementing the CHIPS and Science Act and demonstrates how we continue to deliver on our Invest in America agenda. Polar’s new facility will be completed under a project labor agreement that supports construction workers and creates good quality union jobs in Bloomington, Minnesota. Today’s announcement is just one of the many ways our Invest in America agenda delivers: reshoring American manufacturing, investing in workers and communities across the country, and advancing American leadership in tomorrow’s technologies.”
“Today marks an important milestone in the implementation of the historic CHIPS and Science Act, as we announce the award of our first contract with Polar,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “The Biden-Harris Administration’s investment in Polar will create a new American-owned foundry for sensor and power semiconductors, modernize and expand Polar’s facility in Minnesota, strengthening our national and economic security, strengthening our supply chain, and creating high-quality jobs.”
The Biden-Harris Administration’s investment will support Polar’s efforts to nearly double its U.S. manufacturing capacity for sensors and power chips within two years. The agreement will catalyze more than $525 million in combined private, state and federal investment to transform Polar from a majority foreign-owned in-house manufacturer to a majority U.S.-owned commercial foundry. Through Polar’s semiconductor manufacturing operations, the Administration’s investment is expected to create more than 160 manufacturing and construction jobs in Minnesota.
For more information about Polar’s award, visit the CHIPS for America website.
“The Biden-Harris Administration’s investment in Polar is the first of many to come in communities across our country to regain leadership in semiconductor manufacturing,” said National Economic Advisor Lael Brainard.
“Polar and its employees are excited to embark on this transformational project. We welcome our new customers and partnerships and, as a U.S.-owned sensor and advanced power semiconductor merchant foundry, we support technology and design innovation, protect intellectual property, facilitate onshoring and technology transfer, and provide efficient low- to high-volume manufacturing with world-class quality,” said Surya Iyer, president and chief operating officer of Polar Semiconductor. “Through our collaborative and ongoing workforce development efforts, we expect to be able to support our customers with a highly skilled workforce now and into the future. We are pleased to have closed our significant equity investment from Niobrara Capital and Prysm Capital, and we would also like to extend our sincere gratitude to our partners at the U.S. Department of Commerce, the State of Minnesota, and the City of Bloomington for their support of the future of U.S. semiconductor manufacturing.”
As described in the CHIPS Notice of Funding Opportunity for Commercial Manufacturing Facilities, the Department will distribute funds directly based on the completion of project components related to both capital expenditures and production and commercial milestones. The program will track the performance of each CHIPS incentive award through financial and program reports in accordance with the terms of the grant and will establish a compliance program to monitor whether commitments are being met.
About CHIPS for America
CHIPS for America has allocated more than $35 billion to 16 states and proposed investing billions more in research and innovation, which is expected to create more than 115,000 jobs. Since the Biden-Harris Administration took office, semiconductor and electronics companies have announced more than $400 billion in private investment, driven primarily by public investment. CHIPS for America is part of President Biden and Vice President Harris’ economic plan to invest in America, stimulate private investment, create good-paying jobs, increase U.S. production, and revitalize marginalized communities. CHIPS for America includes the CHIPS Program Office, responsible for manufacturing incentives, and the CHIPS Research and Development Office, responsible for the R&D program, both housed within the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). For more information, visit https://www.chips.gov.
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