Intel Announces $7B Investment In Arizona Factory

Intel’s (NASDAQ:INTC) chief executive Brian Krzanich announced Wednesday that the company will invest $7 billion to build a factory in Arizona. Krzanich made the announcement while standing beside President Trump in the Oval Office of the White House. The construction of the new factory will be completed over the next three to four years.

The new plant will build ultradense 7 nanometer chips with tighter spacing that allows for faster, more energy-efficient processing. Krzanich said in his statement that the new chips will be “the most powerful computer chips on the planet.” Intel is currently the world’s largest computer chip manufacturer.

The factory will complement two other Intel semiconductor plants in Chandler, Ariz. Intel is based in Santa Clara, California, but most of its chip production is in Oregon and Arizona. The company also has factories abroad, including in China, Ireland and Israel.

The Trump administration has been pressuring companies to move manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. Intel said it agreed with his desire to improve the investment climate for American manufacturers. Intel also supports the Trump administration’s plans to reduce corporate taxes and regulations.

Mr. Trump said Intel called the White House several weeks ago to coordinate the announcement. After the announcement, Trump tweeted his appreciation to Krzanich, saying that the factory was a great investment in jobs and innovation. According to reports, Mr. Trump offered Intel no financial incentives to build the factory.

Modern factories that produce the most valuable chips can bring high-paying research and development jobs. This project is expected to add 3,000 factory jobs and over 10,000 supporting jobs to the local economy. Krzanich said in his statement, “Our factories support jobs – high-wage high-tech manufacturing jobs – that are the economic engines of the states where they are located.” The company currently employs about 50,000 people in the United States and 106,000 worldwide.

Building the new plant has been under consideration for several years. The investment will complete a previous plant, known as Fab 42. The plant was conceived in 2011 and the outer shell of the factory was completed years ago, but the project was halted due to poor market demand. Sales are growing again for Intel and it needs the new factory to make chips for Internet-connected devices, cars and tablets.