AFP – The United States (US) will award chip giant TSMC up to USD6.6 billion in direct funding to help build several plants on US soil, officials said, finalising the deal before Donald Trump’s administration enters the White House.
“Today’s final agreement with TSMC – the world’s leading manufacturer of advanced semiconductors – will spur USD65 billion of private investment to build three state-of-the-art facilities in Arizona,” said President Joe Biden in a statement.
The Biden administration’s announcement comes around two months before President-elect Trump takes office.
Trump recently criticised the CHIPS Act, a major law passed during Biden’s tenure aimed at strengthening the US semiconductor industry and reducing the country’s reliance on Asian suppliers.
While the US government has unveiled over USD36 billion in grants through this act, including the award to TSMC, much of the funds remain in the due diligence phase and have not been disbursed.
But once a deal is finalised, funds can start flowing to companies that have hit certain milestones.
TSMC is the second company after Polar Semiconductor to finalise its agreement.
“Currently, the US does not make on our shores any leading-edge chips, and this is the first time ever that we’ll be able to say we will be making these leading-edge chips in the US,” said Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told reporters.
“I want to remind everyone that these are the chips that run artificial intelligence and quantum computing.
“These are the chips that are in sophisticated military equipment,” Raimondo added.
Making these chips in the US, she noted, helps address a national security liability.
