New York still optimistic after losing out on chip fabs

By Larry Rulison | Times Union, Albany

Albany, N.Y. — Suddenly Ohio is a big-time competitor in the race to land computer chip factories.

Whatever happened to upstate New York?

Despite the fact that for most of 2021, New York state was looking like the most likely place that Intel, Samsung and maybe others would be building new computer chip factories in the coming years, those dreams have yet to materialize.

In fact, Samsung decided to build its next chip factory in Texas, where it has two existing chip fabs, and Intel recently stunned the world when it announced it would build a massive, $20-billion computer chip factory outside of Columbus, Ohio, which is home to Ohio State University, where former SUNY Chancellor Kristina Johnson is now president of the school.

Of course, GlobalFoundries announced over the summer that it would be building a second computer chip factory, or “fab,” at the Luther Forest Technology Campus, where it already employs 3,000 people.

The new GlobalFoundries factory, which would be known as Fab 8.2, is expected to employ 1,000 people and cost as much as $15 billion.

But GlobalFoundries has delayed presenting its construction plans for Fab 8.2 to local planning officials in the towns of Malta and Stillwater where Luther Forest is located.

GlobalFoundries says it is merely taking its time with the required studies and engineering plans that are needed for the project, which would significantly increase GlobalFoundries’ chip output.

But also weighing on the project is the passage of the $52 billion CHIPS Act, that U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has pushed through the Senate and now is trying to get passed by the House of Representatives. President Joe Biden has already put his support behind the CHIPS Act and will sign it if the House passes it.

The bill is supposed to encourage the few chip manufacturers left in the world to build new factories in the United States to combat the growing influence of China’s chip-making industry.

“We need the House to pass its version of the package so we can get this bill to President Biden’s desk as quickly as possible,” U.S. Rep. Ro Khanna, a California Democrat told Medill News Service in a story published by the Times Union.

Still, despite the losses to Texas and Ohio, Gov. Kathy Hochul’s administration is keeping its head up and is especially encouraged by plans by U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo to visit Albany Nanotech in the near future to tour the facility, which is in the running for a $2 billion federal chip manufacturing lab that would be funded by the CHIPS Act.

Although New York is considered to be the front-runner for the lab, known as the National Semiconductor Technology Center, other states have launched campaigns to try and wrest the center from the Empire State.

Hochul said she has made attracting new chip fabs to New York state a priority for her administration, and has pledged an undisclosed amount of money toward improving infrastructure at tech parks across upstate, like Luther Forest, to better attract chip companies that are looking at sites across the globe. The money will be allocated to Empire State Development, the state’s economic development arm, which also oversees Albany Nanotech.

In addition to Luther Forest, the sites include the Marcy Nanocenter outside of Utica and sites near Syracuse and between Rochester and Buffalo. Marcy is now home to Wolfspeed which makes power electronics chips.

" New York is a pioneer in national chip fab production, and ESD is fully committed to partnering with the semiconductor industry on its expansion, exemplified by our long history of attracting global leaders such as IBM, Global Foundries, onsemi (formerly On Semiconductors), Applied Materials, Tokyo Electron and Wolfspeed,” ESD spokeswoman Kristin Devoe told the Times Union. “We will continue our focus on growing the advanced manufacturing sector in New York and market the many attributes that have continuously placed the Empire State in top contention. Our readiness and opportunities render us very optimistic to secure significant new semiconductor chip manufacturing in the future.”

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