EU backs $1.9 billion aid for Intel’s plant in Poland
The announcement comes more than a year after Intel shared its plans to build a USD 4.6 billion assembly and testing unit outside Wroclaw, Poland.
There is some good news on the horizon for struggling chipmaking giant Intel.
The European Commission has backed a 7.4 billion zlotys (USD 1.9 billion) state aid package for Intel so that the company can expand its foundry in Poland, but with the caveat that the chipmaker does not abandon the project amid its ongoing crisis, according to a report in The Register.
“This investment is worth, both in terms of the aid package and in total, over 25 billion zlotys ($6.47 billion),” Poland's Deputy Prime Minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said.
The announcement comes more than a year after Intel shared its plans to build a USD 4.6 billion assembly and testing unit outside Wroclaw, Poland.
The facility will support the chipmaker’s other developments in the region and EU, including its €30 billion chip fab in Germany’s Magdeburg.
However, before the project gets a final go-ahead, the Polish government needs to pass relevant laws and fulfill European Commission norms before clinching the agreement.
According to Intel’s earlier announcement, the Polish investment will contribute to the EU goal of bringing back 20% of global chip manufacturing capacity to the region by 2030.
The company believes that its planned back-end manufacturing investment in an assembly and test facility in Poland, together with the existing fab or front-end chip manufacturing site in Ireland and the planned chip manufacturing site in Germany, will help create an end-to-end leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing value chain in Europe, TrendForce reports.
However, it may not be all smooth sailing. Due to delays in subsidy approvals, Intel is reportedly considering postponing construction of its Fab 29.1 and 29.2 in Magdeburg, with the new timeline of the start of construction pushed to May 2025.
