Intel Plans $88 Billion Investment in EU Semiconductor R&D, Manufacturing

Intel has unveiled the first phase of its $88 billion investment in the European Union over the next decade along the entire semiconductor value chain. That includes R&D, manufacturing and packaging technologies.

The plan includes an initial Intel investment of nearly $19 billion. That will go toward a semiconductor fab mega-site in Germany, a new R&D and design hub in France, and R&D, manufacturing and foundry services in Ireland, Italy, Poland and Spain.

With this investment, Intel plans to bring its most advanced technology to Europe. It will create a next-generation European chip ecosystem, addressing the need for a more balanced and resilient supply chain.

Pat Gelsinger is Intel’s CEO.

Intel’s Pat Gelsinger

“Our planned investments are a major step both for Intel and for Europe,” he said. “The EU Chips Act will empower private companies and governments to work together to drastically advance Europe’s position in the semiconductor sector. This broad initiative will boost Europe’s R&D innovation and bring leading-edge manufacturing to the region for the benefit of our customers and partners around the world. We are committed to playing an essential role in shaping Europe’s digital future for decades to come.”

Balancing the Global Semiconductor Supply Chain

The Intel investment program includes a major expansion of the chipmaker’s production capacities in Europe. In the initial phase, Intel plans to develop two semiconductor fabs in Germany. Construction should begin in the first half of 2023 and production should come online in 2027.

The new fabs will deliver chips using Intel’s Angstrom-era transistor technologies. It will serve the needs of both foundry customers and Intel for Europe and globally as part of the company’s integrated device manufacturer (IDM) 2.0 strategy.

Germany is an ideal place to establish a new hub for advanced chipmaking, Intel said. It plans to refer to the new site as the Silicon Junction. It will serve as the connection point for other centers of innovation and manufacturing across the country and region.

Intel also continues to invest in its Ireland expansion project, spending an additional $13.2 billion and doubling the manufacturing space to bring Intel 4 process technology to Europe and expand foundry services. Once complete, this expansion will bring Intel’s total investment in Ireland to more than $33 billion.

Intel in Italy and France

Intel and Italy have entered into negotiations to enable a back-end manufacturing facility. Operations should start between 2025 and 2027. Intel and Italy aim to make this facility a first of its kind in the EU with new and innovative technologies. This would be in addition to the foundry innovation and growth opportunities Intel expects to pursue in Italy based on its planned acquisition of Tower Semiconductor. Tower has a significant partnership with STMicroelectronics, which has a fab in Agrate Brianza, Italy.

In France, Intel plans to build its new European R&D hub. France will become Intel’s European headquarters for high performance computing (HPC) and artificial intelligence (AI) design capabilities. HPC and AI innovation will benefit a broad set of industry sectors. Those include automotive, agriculture, climate, drug discovery, energy, genomics, life sciences and security.

In addition, Intel plans to establish its main European foundry design center in France. It will offer design services and design collaterals to French, European and worldwide industry partners and customers.

New Investments in France, Spain

In Poland, Intel is increasing its lab space by 50% with a focus on developing solutions in the fields of deep neural networks, audio, graphics, data center and cloud computing. The expansion is expected to be completed in 2023.

Over the past decade in Spain, the Barcelona Supercomputing Center and Intel have been collaborating on exascale architecture. Now, they are developing zettascale architecture for the next decade. The supercomputing center and Intel plan to establish joint labs in Barcelona to advance computing.

Intel has been present in Europe for more than 30 years. In the past two years, it has spent more than $11 billion with European suppliers. As Intel works to rebalance silicon supply globally, that investment should nearly double by 2026.