The US allocated $406 million to Taiwanese silicon wafer manufacturer GlobalWafers

In distributing funds under the so-called “CHIP Act” of 2022, Joseph Biden administration officials were primarily concerned with large chip manufacturers that must build new plants in the United States, but now it is the turn of small suppliers of important products. GlobalWafers will be allocated $406 million to build facilities in two US states.

Image Source: GlobalWafers

A Taiwanese manufacturer of silicon wafers, which are needed to make semiconductor chips, is planning to build plants in Texas and Missouri, so it could qualify for $406 million in subsidies from the US government. The corresponding agreement was signed this week. U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said on the occasion, “The semiconductor wafers that will be made here in the U.S. through our investment in GlobalWafers are at the heart of the cutting-edge chips that will allow us to out-innovate and compete with the rest of the world.” . These projects will not only strengthen supply chains, the nation’s economy and security, but also create approximately 2,000 new jobs in Texas and Missouri. The 300mm silicon wafers, which will be manufactured by GlobalWafers in the US, will include silicon-on-insulator (SOI) options.

GlobalWafers plans to invest about $4 billion in the construction of two factories for the production of silicon wafers in the United States. The “Chip Act” also involves the allocation of subsidies to Intel, Micron, Samsung and TSMC. The latter is also a Taiwanese manufacturer of semiconductor components, but was among the first to receive guarantees of subsidies from the US authorities, and their value is second only to the funds owed to the American company Intel, which is still at a strategic crossroads.

GlobalWafers management considers the localization of silicon wafers in the United States an important step to protect its business in conditions where the country’s new administration threatens to increase import duties on products of Asian origin. In any case, some of the raw materials and materials for the operation of the new GlobalWafers enterprises will have to be imported, and this creates some uncertainty. In total, the company has 18 enterprises in nine countries. Silicon wafers are now controlled by five companies with more than 80% of the global market, with about 90% of wafers produced in East Asia.