STMicro, GlobalFoundries are planning a new $ 5.7 billion French chip factory

The shield represents a joint venture for semiconductor and chipmaker GlobalFoundries Inc. during the company’s IPO on the Nasdaq MarketSite in Times Square in New York City, US, October 28, 2021. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

PARIS/STOCKHOLM, July 11 (Reuters) – Chipmakers STMicroelectronics and GlobalFoundries (GFS.O) announced plans on Monday to build a semiconductor plant in France, drawing money from the government, to the latest move to increase production in the country.

The project represents a lion’s share of the 6.7 billion euros ($ 6.8 billion) of investment from major global corporations that President Emmanuel Macron will announce at this year’s Choose France summit in Versailles. read more

The United States and Europe are urging home chip manufacturers by giving the state billions of dollars to break reliance on Asian suppliers and alleviate the global chip shortage. harm to car manufacturers, even though there are signs that demand is declining. read more

This facility, which is attached to STM’s plant in Crolles, is expected to be fully operational by 2026, with 620,000 wafers annually operating in the 18-nanometers range, says the word.

Those are used in automotive, network-of-things and telephone applications.

The companies did not disclose how much investment in the new site near the Italian and Swiss borders or how much money the French state will provide.

French presidential advisers said they could not disclose the amount of money because they expected to receive money from the European Commission as part of the Chips Act, the fund was not discussed. make up.

In a phone call with reporters, officials told the bank – which Macron’s office says is worth more than 5.7 billion euros – it would be difficult not to get involved from the French government. Macron will visit the company’s website, his office said to read more

Spokesmen for GlobalFoundries and STMicro declined to comment.

THE MOST POSSIBLE

The new facility will create about 1,000 new jobs and will also help STMicro reach its goal of increasing revenue by over $ 20 billion.

“We will have the power to support our European and global customers as they move towards digitalization and decarbonization,” said STMicroelectronics CEO Jean-Marc Chery.

While STMicro previously announced plans to double its revenues this year to $ 3.6 billion, GlobalFoundries has expanded to the US, Germany and Singapore.

The European Commission earlier this year lifted financial rules for new semiconductor plants as part of the European Chips Act as the bloc seeks to double its global market share to 20% by 2030.

In March, Intel put plans for an $ 88 billion investment in Europe and Germany chose the platform for a new chipmaking complex. In France, he plans to build his new European research facility, creating 1,000 high -tech projects. read more

Intel’s system will produce the latest 2-nanometer chips, much more modern than the STM-GlobalFoundries platform.

Asian chipmakers such as TSMC and Samsung have also planned major investment plans but have so far not advertised semiconductor houses in Europe.

Chipmakers has seen significant demand since the end of 2020 as high orders from electronics manufacturers boosted by work-from-home operations have spurred an increase in sales of smartphones and tablets. leads the provision of crunches for other industries such as autos and telecom operators.

However, the lack of a chip can turn into a glut. An even weaker example of the industry expected by Micron Technology Inc (MU.O) in late June has raised concerns that the industry is looking in a circle of its own. read more

Gartner and other research agencies said sales of PCs and phones would fall later this year, reducing the share of chips for other businesses.

($ 1 = 0.9862 euros)

Presented by Supantha Mukherjee in Stockholm, Sudip Kar-Gupta and Michel Rose in Paris; Editing by Silvia Aloisi and Bernadette Baum

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