US avails US$20bn to boost chip production

WASHINGTON - The White House unveiled almost US$20 billion in new grants and loans on Wednesday to support Intel’s US chipmaking facilities, marking the Biden administration’s largest funding announcement yet as it tackles China’s dominance of the crucial technology.

President Joe Biden’s decision to make the announcement during a trip to Arizona underscores his strategy of highlighting legislative achievements in key battleground states ahead of November’s presidential rematch against Donald Trump.

The southwestern state was one of the tightest races of 2020, with Biden winning by just 10 457 votes. Winning it in 2024 could prove crucial for Biden, who faces a tough re-election fight as he seeks to convince voters still skeptical about his economic record, despite strong recent growth and job creation data, persistently low unemployment, and slowing inflation.

“The Department of Commerce has reached a preliminary agreement with Intel to provide up to US$8.5 billion in direct funding along with US$11 billion in loans under the Chips and Science Act,” the White House said in a statement.

The money “will support the construction and expansion of Intel facilities in Arizona, Ohio, New Mexico, and Oregon, creating nearly 30 000 jobs and supporting tens of thousands of indirect jobs,” it added. Wednesday’s US$8.5 billion direct funding announcement is the largest of any grant made so far under the US$52.7 billion 2022 Chips and Science Act, US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told reporters ahead of the announcement.

The money will help incentivize Intel to make more than US$100 billion worth of investments, which will be one of the largest investments ever in US semi-conductor manufacturing, she said. It puts the US on track to meet its target of producing 20% of the world’s cutting-edge chips by 2030, up from zero percent today, she added.

“We rely on a very small number of factories in Asia for all of our most sophisticated chips. That’s untenable and unacceptable,” she said. “It’s an economic security problem. It’s a national security problem. And we’re going to change that,” she added.