Intel confirms Israel wafer fab plans

This was expected after confirmation that Intel would receive $525 million in the form of subsidies, tax exemptions and discounts, towards the overall cost of $3.5 billion was given by the Israeli government (see Nov. 30 story).

The confirmation followed a series of leaks from the Israeli government on the progress of negotiations with Intel during 2005, making the process almost a public one.

Intel said construction of Fab 28, Intel’s second 45nm factory, is set to begin immediately would be able to produce microprocessors on 45-nm manufacturing processes in the second half of 2008. Fab 28 is set to become Intel’s seventh 300-mm wafer facility and would contain approximately 200,000 square feet of clean room space. Over several years the fab would create more than 2,000 Intel jobs at the site, Intel said.

In July Intel announced plans to invest more than $3 billion to build another 300mm fab, Fab 32 in Chandler, Arizona, where Intel’s 45nm technology, which will first be put in high volume production.