[Alpha Biz= Reporter Kim Jisun] The U.S. Department of Commerce announced on the 17th (local time) that it has finalized a decision to provide a $406 million (approximately 580 billion KRW) subsidy to GlobalWafers, a Taiwan-based silicon wafer manufacturer.

The subsidy will support part of the construction costs for GlobalWafers' wafer manufacturing plants, with the company planning to invest around $4 billion (approximately 5.75 trillion KRW) in facilities in Texas and Missouri. The two sides had signed a preliminary memorandum of terms (PMT) in July and negotiated the subsidy details since then.

GlobalWafers previously announced plans in 2022 to begin mass production of 300mm advanced semiconductor wafers at its Texas plant, marking a first in the United States. The Missouri facility will focus on producing Silicon-on-Insulator (SOI) wafers for use in defense and aerospace industries.

Wafers are a critical component of advanced semiconductors. The Department of Commerce emphasized that this decision is part of the Biden administration's efforts to strengthen the U.S. chip supply chain. Under the CHIPS Act, enacted in 2022, the Department of Commerce allocated $36 billion (approximately 51.7 trillion KRW) in subsidies based on preliminary agreements, with $25 billion (approximately 35.9 trillion KRW) finalized to date.

 

 

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