Semiconductor manufacturers GlobalFoundries (American) and STMicroelectronics (Franco-Italian) will build a factory near Grenoble to produce semiconductors, for an estimated investment of 5.7 billion euros, according to the two companies and the French government.
The new plant should create approximately one thousand additional jobs in Crolles, where STMicroelectronics already has a large manufacturing site, and will benefit from “significant financial support from the French State”according to the two companies.
“This is the largest non-nuclear industrial investment in recent decades and a big step for our industrial sovereignty”commented on Monday, July 11, the Minister of the Economy, Bruno Le Maire, on Twitter.
The project is the spearhead of the investment program and the “Choose France” summit, which welcomes the leaders of large foreign companies to convince them to invest in France. This summit is held Monday at the Palace of Versailles in the presence of the President of the Republic, Emmanuel Macron.
An essential component
The new factory “will significantly contribute to the objectives of the European “Chips Act” plan, one of the aims of which is to increase Europe’s production capacity to 20% of world capacity by 2030”the two companies said in a statement.
“This large multi-year investment aims not only to produce advanced technology semiconductors in Europe, but also to support the leadership and resilience of European technology ecosystems, from research and development to high-volume production, and thus meet the demand of European and global customers », can we also read in the press release. The semiconductors produced in the new factory will notably serve end markets “such as automotive, industrial, IoT [l’Internet des objets] and communication infrastructure ».
Semiconductors are to electronics what oil is to industry: an essential, but often invisible, component present in computers, video game consoles, smartphones, televisions, cars, planes, washing machines, air conditioner temperature sensors, solar panels, etc.
But the demand for electronic devices of all kinds has increased dramatically since the start of the pandemic, between the rise of telecommuting and leisure at home. To the point of slowing down other sectors that are greedy, such as the automobile.