Intel set to splash billions on new European empire

Intel
(Image credit: Intel)

Intel has announced plans to invest tens of billions of dollars into semiconductor manufacturing projects across Europe.

During a webcast attended by TechRadar Pro, company CEO Pat Gelsinger revealed plans to invest €80 billion ($88 billion) in Europe over the next decade in an attempt to cultivate a “next-generation chip ecosystem”.

Although Intel will work on a litany of projects across a number of countries, the most significant pledge was perhaps a €17 billion ($18.5 billion) investment in a new manufacturing “mega-site” in Germany.

Nicknamed Silicon Junction, the facility will house two new fabs capable of producing top-tier chips for both Intel itself and customers of Intel Foundry Services (IFS). Gelsinger says he hopes to be able to break ground in early 2023 and fire up the engines by 2027.

Intel on the continent

Currently, the lion’s share of semiconductor manufacturing takes place in the APAC region, where companies like TSMC and Samsung are based.

In light of the ongoing chip shortage and rising tensions with China, the United States is investing heavily in ramping up its own production capacity, with a large helping hand from Intel.

Earlier in the year, for example, Intel announced it would splash $20 billion on a new state-of-the-art chip factory in Oregon, US. The 1,000-acre site will house up to eight separate fabs once complete. 

But with this latest round of investments, Intel will seek to turn Europe into a competitive player too, in support of the European Commission's ambitions to onshore 20% of the semiconductor supply chain by 2030, as set out in the European Chips Act.

Intel

Workers at Intel's fabrication plant in Leixlip, Ireland. (Image credit: Intel)

“The recent chip shortage has reminded us of the risk of being too dependent on any one region in the short-term,” said Gelsinger. “Our landmark pan-European investment addresses the global need for a more balanced and resilient supply chain.”

“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.”

In addition to the manufacturing hub in Germany, Gelsinger announced a further €12 billion ($13.2 billion) investment in its facility in Ireland, which will double in size and bring Intel 4 (the new name for the firm’s 7-nanometer process) to Europe for the first time.

Intel will also establish a new R&D hub in France, which will become the company’s European headquarters for research in high-performance computing (HPC) and AI, creating an estimated 1,000 additional high-tech jobs.

Lastly, the company laid out plans to utilize the expertise it will gain from the acquisition of Tower Semiconductor with a new “state of the art back-end manufacturing facility” in Italy.

“This is a special moment for Intel and Europe,” Gelsinger added. “We hope these investments are a magnet for engineers, technicians, innovators, entrepreneurs and small and medium businesses as we collectively solve the hard challenges of the digital age.”

TOPICS
Joel Khalili
News and Features Editor

Joel Khalili is the News and Features Editor at TechRadar Pro, covering cybersecurity, data privacy, cloud, AI, blockchain, internet infrastructure, 5G, data storage and computing. He's responsible for curating our news content, as well as commissioning and producing features on the technologies that are transforming the way the world does business.

Read more
TSMC
TSMC announces huge US investment to boost AI development
A chip wafer manufactured at Intel Foundry
Can 18A save Intel from being devoured by its rivals – and Wall Street?
supercomputer
EU reveals sites for major AI factories across Europe
Intel Logo
The end of an era? TSMC, Broadcom could tear apart Intel's legendary business after 57 years by separating its foundry and chip design
The socket interface of the Intel Core Ultra processor
Intel unveils its most powerful AI PCs yet - new Intel Core Ultra Series 2 processors pack in vPro for lightweight laptops and high-performance workstations alike
Apple's new research and development facility in Austin, Texas
Apple pledges to spend $500 billon in the US over the next few years
Latest in Pro
Finger Presses Orange Button Domain Name Registration on Black Keyboard Background. Closeup View
I visited the world’s first registered .com domain – and you won’t believe what it’s offering today
Racks of servers inside a data center.
Modernizing data centers: an efficient path forward
Dr. Peter Zhou, President of Huawei Data Storage Product Line
Why AI commonization is so important for business intelligent transformation and what Huawei’s data storage has to offer
Wix automation
The world's leading website builder aims to save businesses time with new tool
Data Breach
Thousands of healthcare records exposed online, including private patient information
China
Juniper patches security flaws which could have let hackers take over your router
Latest in News
Super Mario Odyssey
ChatGPT is the ultimate gaming tool - here's 4 ways you can use AI to help with your next playthrough
Ray-Ban smart glasses with the Cpperni logo, an LED array, and a MacBook Air with M4 next to ecah other.
ICYMI: the week's 7 biggest tech stories from Twitter's massive outage to iRobot's impressive new Roombas
Brad Pitt looks over his right shoulder with 'F1' written behind him
Apple Original Films will take you behind-the-scenes of a racing cockpit in this new thrilling F1 movie trailer
AI writer
Coding AI tells developer to write it himself
Reacher looking down at another character from the Prime Video TV series Reacher
Reacher season 3 becomes Prime Video’s biggest returning show thanks to Hollywood’s biggest heavyweight
Finger Presses Orange Button Domain Name Registration on Black Keyboard Background. Closeup View
I visited the world’s first registered .com domain – and you won’t believe what it’s offering today