Micron Technology may soon receive a big cash influx from federal funding to expand and modernize its Manassas microchip production facility. Micron is the only U.S.-based manufacturer of memory chips.
The Department of Commerce announced this week that it has signed a nonbinding preliminary agreement with Micron that would provide up to $275 million in funding for improvements at the Manassas site. This funding is a result of the CHIPS and Science Act, a 2022 law that provides funding for research and manufacturing of semiconductors in the U.S.
The DRAM chips Micron produces are important components in advanced technologies, including “personal computing, industrial, high-performance compute, automotive, industrial, wireless communications and artificial intelligence.”
There will be an expected expenditure of $2 billion in improvements at the Manassas facility over the next several years. This will bring the production of Micron’s 1-alpha technology, “an advanced DRAM process technology” that “offers meaningful improvements in bit density, power efficiency, and performance capability,” to Manassas from Taiwan.
The project in Manassas would create over 400 manufacturing jobs and up to 2,700 community jobs at the peak of the project.
“With this investment in Micron, we are delivering on one of the core objectives of the CHIPS program — onshoring the development and production of the most advanced memory semiconductor technology, which is crucial for safeguarding our leadership on artificial intelligence and protecting our economic and national security,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo.
In addition to the agreement with Manassas, the Department of Commerce has awarded Micron up to $6.165 billion in direct funding. Those funds will go toward Micron’s two-decade plan to invest $100 billion in New York and $25 billion in Boise, Idaho. Micron’s investments in these two cities will create around 20,000 jobs and help the U.S. grow its share of advanced memory manufacturing from less than 2 percent to about 10 percent by 2035.
“Our administration knows these landmark announcements are more than investments; they are catalysts for sustained economic growth,” said Vice President Kamala Harris in a news release.
Feature image courtesy Micron
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