The Department of Commerce announced today that it has entered into a preliminary agreement with Polar Semiconductor to provide the company with $120 million under the CHIPS and Science Act to expand the company’s semiconductor manufacturing facility in Bloomington, Minnesota.
President Biden signed the CHIPS and Science Act into law in August 2022, making up to $52 billion of funding available to incentivize semiconductor makers to establish new manufacturing operations in the United States.
“Thanks to President Biden’s leadership, with this announcement we are making taxpayer dollars go as far as possible to create jobs, secure our supply chains, and bolster manufacturing in Minnesota,” Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said in a press release.
“This proposed investment in Polar will crowd in private capital, which will help make Polar a U.S.-based, independent foundry. They will be able to expand their customer base and create a stable domestic supply of critical chips, made in America’s heartland,” she added.
Specifically, the investment would allow Polar to double its U.S. production capacity of sensor and power chips within the next two years. It would also shift Polar from a majority foreign-owned in-house manufacturer to a majority U.S.-owned commercial foundry.
The Commerce Department estimates that this investment will create over 160 manufacturing and construction jobs in Minnesota.
The agency noted that Polar received both state and Federal support for its proposed expansion, including $75 million from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED).
“When President Biden signed the CHIPS and Science Act, he put a stake in the ground about the importance of semiconductor manufacturing in the United States,” said Assistant to the President for Science and Technology and Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Arati Prabhakar.
“This is where the president’s leadership changes communities and changes lives. This proposed federal investment will catalyze $525 million from private companies and the state of Minnesota to create a healthy supply of made-in-Minnesota semiconductors that are essential to producing cars, electrical grids, defense systems, and more,” stated Prabhakar.
