Intel to invest $95 billion in European chip-making facilities

Intel Corp. intends to invest up to $95 billion in new chip-making facilities in Europe, to increase production capacity during a worldwide chip supply bottleneck.

Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said on Tuesday that the firm was building two-chip facilities at a new site in Europe and may potentially expand them further, bringing the total investment over approximately a decade to the equivalent of up to 80 billion euros, WSJ reported.

The facilities would be built to meet the skyrocketing demand for semiconductors as computers, automobiles, and other electronic devices grow increasingly chip-hungry.

Intel announced intentions to commit production capacity to the auto-chip market at an Irish facility. It is also forming a chip-design team to assist others in adapting ideas to make use of Intel's manufacturing capabilities, the report stated.

According to the firm, Intel's contract chip-making division has been courting new clients in Europe, particularly car makers.

Intel's manufacturing expansion in Europe is part of Gelsinger's effort to make Intel a major contract chipmaker, producing semiconductors not just for its use but also for businesses like Qualcomm Inc. and cloud computing provider Amazon.com Inc, WSJ stated.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world's largest contract chip producer, said this year that it will invest a record $100 billion in production capacity over the next three years.

The worldwide semiconductor scarcity has particularly harmed automakers. Ford Motor Company and General Motors Co said last week that they were reducing output due to a shortage of semiconductors.

The shares of the company are trading at $53.74

Source: WSJ