The Department of Commerce has awarded $6.17 billion in direct funding to Micron Technology for projects to boost the production of legacy memory chips.
Micron will use the award to expand its facilities in Idaho and New York, which is expected to strengthen the domestic supply chain of DRAM chips, Commerce said Tuesday.
The CHIPS investment supports Micron's 20-year, $125 billion plan of modernizing and expanding its facilities. The company intends to utilize $100 billion on its New York facility, while the Idaho site will get $25 billion. The projects are expected to generate around 20,000 jobs and bolster the nation's share of advanced memory manufacturing from less than 2 percent today to 10 percent by 2035.
DRAM chips are necessary for advanced technologies including personal computing, industrial, high-performance compute, automotive, wireless communications and artificial intelligence. The chips generate and fuel Micron's performance memory, known as high-bandwidth memory, or HBM, and HBM is key in new AI model support.
DOC will also invest in the expansion of Micron's facility in Manassas, Virginia to onshore the company's 1-alpha technology. The two parties have already signed a non-binding preliminary memorandum of terms for proposed funding valued at $275 million.
Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo stated, "With this investment in Micron, we are delivering on one of the core objectives of the CHIPS program - onshoring the development and production of the most advanced memory semiconductor technology, which is crucial for safeguarding our leadership on artificial intelligence and protecting our economic and national security."
Micron President and CEO Sanjay Mehrotra added, "Micron's investments in domestic semiconductor manufacturing capabilities, supported by the bipartisan CHIPS Act, will help drive economic growth and ensure that the U.S. remains at the forefront of technological advancements."