Polar Semiconductor

Commerce Secretary, Gina Raimondo mentioned that the grant would assist in establishing a new foundry in the U.S. that manufactures sensors and power semiconductors

The US Commerce Department has secured a US$123 million grant for Polar Semiconductor to expand its plant in Minnesota.

As a part of US President Joe Biden’s administration, the US$52.7 billion semiconductor manufacturing and research subsidy program is the first of its kind program finalized by the industry. This marks the first award to be decided by the department. 

Minnesota Funds US$75 million to US$525 million for Polar Semiconductors

Minnesota is funding a US$75 million to US$525 million growth project at Polar. The top White House economic adviser Lael Brainard on Monday said, "We expect this to be the first of many awards to be finalized soon.”

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo mentioned that the grant would assist in establishing a new foundry in the US that manufactures sensors and power semiconductors. The grant will increase Polar's output from approximately 20,000 wafers a month to 40,000. This would cater to the demands of the aerospace, automotive, and defense sectors.

The US Commerce Department has allocated over  US$35 billion for 26 projects. The projects encompass grants to South Korea's Samsung for the expansion of chip production in Texas. 

A total of US$8.5 billion is invested in Taiwan’s TSMC while US$6.1 billion is invested for Micron Technology to fund US factories. 

President Joe Biden's 2022 chips law goal is to make the US more competitive with China for the expansion of US chip production. 

Moreover, the chips law also encompasses a 25% tax credit for constructing chip facilities, projected to have a value of $24 billion.