(Washington) The White House unveiled on Wednesday a package of aid and subsidies, amounting to nearly $20 billion, to enable the American semiconductor giant Intel to increase its production of these essential components. .
It is the largest amount announced so far by President Joe Biden’s administration to combat China’s power in this crucial industry.
The president decided to make this announcement during a trip to Arizona, to highlight the measures adopted during his mandate in the states which should be decisive in the presidential election in November.
As in 2020, Mr. Biden will face former Republican President Donald Trump in the race for the White House.
That year, Arizona (southwest) offered victory to the Democrat, but with one of the closest results in the country, only 10,457 votes apart.
A new success in this state could prove decisive for the current president, who seeks to convince voters who remain skeptical of his economic record, despite recent positive statistics concerning growth, job creation, a low unemployment rate or even a slowdown in inflation.
“The Department of Commerce has reached a preliminary agreement with Intel to provide up to $8.5 billion in direct financing and $11 billion in loans under the Chips and Science Act,” detailed the White House in a press release.
This law, which dates from the summer of 2022, provides $52.7 billion to revive semiconductor production in the United States.
The envelope announced Wednesday will participate “in the construction and expansion of Intel infrastructures in Arizona, Ohio, New Mexico and Oregon,” added the White House.
Thanks to these investments, it anticipates the creation of nearly 30,000 direct jobs and “support for tens of thousands of indirect jobs”.
100 billion dollars
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told reporters ahead of the official announcement that Intel would invest the equivalent of more than $100 billion.
According to her, this represents one of the highest investments ever made in the semiconductor industry in the country.
And it will allow the United States to move closer to its goal of producing, by 2030, 20% of the latest chips manufactured in the world, she added, emphasizing that the current level was zero.
“We rely on a very small number of factories in Asia for all of our most sophisticated microprocessors. This is untenable and unacceptable,” commented the minister.
“It’s an economic security issue. This is a national security issue. And we are going to change that,” she said.
The White House has indicated that Intel also intends to take advantage of an investment tax credit of up to 25% of certain expenses, which could significantly increase the financial support it receives. he would be likely to receive from the American government.
This tax benefit stems from another legislative measure of the Biden government, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), also adopted in 2022. It is a vast energy transition and social reform program.
“Intel’s investment represents a promising part of a great turnaround in American history, with leading semiconductor production returning to the United States for the first time in forty years,” commented Lael Brainard, Joe Biden’s main economic advisor, during the same speech as Mr.me Raimondo.
“With the support of the CHIPS Act, Intel’s $100 billion investment fits into President Biden’s promise to build the future of the semiconductor industry here in the United States », noted Mme Brainard, specifying that 10,000 jobs would be created in production and 20,000 in the construction sector.
Arizona and Ohio, two “Swing States” – likely to lean towards the Democrats or the Republicans from one presidential election to the next – should benefit from the greatest number of job creations.
reference: www.lapresse.ca