U.S. Awards Micron $6 Billion, Creating 20,000 Jobs

The U.S. Commerce Department said on Tuesday it had finalized a $6.165 billion government subsidy for Micron Technology to produce semiconductors in New York and Idaho.

The funding will support Micron’s long-term plan to invest around $100 billion in manufacturing in New York and $25 billion in Idaho and is one of the largest government awards to chip companies under the $52.7 billion 2022 CHIPS and Science Act.

The department said the Micron investments will create approximately 20,000 jobs and help the U.S. grow its share of advanced memory chip manufacturing from less than 2% to approximately 10% by 2035.

The new funding, $4.6 billion for New York and $1.5 billion for Idaho, is identical to the amount announced in April.

Separately, the department said it has reached a preliminary agreement to award Micron up to $275 million in proposed funding to expand and modernize its facility in Manassas, Virginia to help it bring a more advanced technology to the United States boosting its wafer production.

Micron is working on a 1,400-acre mega campus to make dynamic random-access memory chips (DRAM) in central New York state.

DRAM chips are key components in personal computing, cars, industrial operations, wireless communications and artificial intelligence and Micron’s High-Bandwidth Memory is critical for enabling new AI models, the department said.

Ongoing advancements in AI are driving significant demand for semiconductor technologies, especially in areas like memory chips that are essential for AI model development. 

As AI continues to transform industries, the U.S. government is focusing on supporting domestic chip manufacturing to maintain a competitive edge. 

With AI playing a central role in the future of work, the expansion of semiconductor production could help meet growing technological demands while bolstering U.S. economic resilience and national security.

Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said the award “will help drive economic growth and ensure that the U.S. remains at the forefront of technological advancements.”

Micron shares were down less than 1% on Tuesday.

The White House said the investments will help “onshore a critical technology relied upon by our defense industry, automotive sector and national security community.”

President Joe Biden’s administration has finalized a series of subsidies, including a $7.86 billion award for Intel, $6.6 billion for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co’s U.S. unit and $1.5 billion for GlobalFoundries.

The final awards come just weeks before President-elect Donald Trump, who has criticized the program, takes office.

(Reporting by Emma Ascott, David Shepardson in Washington and Deborah Sophia in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Alexander Smith)