GlobalFoundries announced on Oct. 14 that approximately $10 billion in Japanese investment will fund the construction of a new semiconductor factory at its Malta, New York, campus under a US-Japan financing structure, with groundbreaking expected before the end of the year.
The first phase would build a 300mm fab adjacent to GlobalFoundries’ existing Fab 8. A second investment of approximately $10 billion could fund another factory on campus, bringing the US-Japan initiative to $21 billion. Figures represent total investment, not disclosed construction contract values.
The company says environmental permits and approvals have been completed and basic infrastructure is in place.
“We have lined up our key suppliers and early enablement work at the site is underway,” GlobalFoundries CEO Tim Breen said during an Oct. 14 investor presentation.
The semiconductor maker says it expects the first fab to be ready for equipment in 2028 and to produce its first wafers in 2029. It would eventually add roughly 900,000 wafers of annual production capacity.
ENR reported in 2024 that GlobalFoundries planned to expand Fab 8 and build a second factory nearby, with construction expected to begin in 2025. Records reviewed by ENR showed that JE Dunn Construction had been hired for the new facility. New York committed $575 million in performance-based Green CHIPS tax credits and $30 million in infrastructure for broader expansion.
GlobalFoundries did not immediately respond to questions from ENR about how the newly funded first phase relates to that project or whether JE Dunn remains part of the construction team. JE Dunn referred questions to GlobalFoundries.
GlobalFoundries’ plan shows the existing Fab 8 along with the planned first and second phases of new semiconductor manufacturing capacity at its Malta, New York campus. The company says the two phases could receive up to $21 billion under the US-Japan investment agreement. Click to enlarge.
Graphic courtesy of GlobalFoundries
Japan will provide the investment while GlobalFoundries manages the construction and ultimately operates the facilities. A special purpose vehicle, a separate entity created to finance and own the project, will be owned by the U.S. and Japanese governments and will finance and fully own the fab infrastructure and manufacturing equipment, GlobalFoundries CFO Sam Franklin said during the presentation to investors. Its obligations encompass “the entirety of the financing requirements, project development, construction, ramp operations, technology and management expenses,” he said. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan confirmed October 15 that the two governments had agreed to implement the New York project as the first investment in semiconductors under their Strategic Investment Initiative.
The company estimates that the two-phase program would support approximately 27,000 construction and related ecosystem jobs and more than 1,000 manufacturing jobs.
FILE ENR
| GlobalFoundries and the semiconductor construction boom
Redirected CHIPS funding
The Japanese funding comes as the US Commerce Department restructures federal assistance that had supported GlobalFoundries’ previous expansion plans.
In February 2024, the U.S. Department of Commerce proposed approximately $1.5 billion in CHIPS and Science Act funding for three projects: construction of a new Malta factory, expansion of existing Malta facilities, and modernization of GlobalFoundries’ Burlington, Vt., fab. The two Malta projects were expected to triple the capacity of the campus. Commerce subsequently finalized the award, with current records including $1.45 billion in direct funding associated with Malta.
Commerce agreed to redirect up to $955 million of GlobalFoundries’ CHIPS award toward new research and capital investments beginning in 2027, without increasing the total federal award. GlobalFoundries described the change as a move to “repurpose” previously awarded CHIPS funding. The money will support work at the company’s facilities in Malta, New York and Burlington, Vt., including silicon photonics, silicon-germanium technology and advanced semiconductor packaging.
As part of the amended agreement, GlobalFoundries pledged to invest $5 billion in the two facilities. This company expenditure is separate from the existing CHIPS award.
It is unclear whether the amendment redirects federal funding that previously supported construction of the new Malta factory. Commerce did not immediately respond to ENR’s request for clarification.
GlobalFoundries’ Breen said the stakeholders would make a decision not to go there conditional second factory before the end of 2028. If approved, the second phase would begin with engineering studies and permitting before moving into construction, eventually adding approximately 900,000 wafers of annual production capacity.
