Today, the Biden-Harris Administration announced that the Department of Commerce and Entegris, a key supplier of advanced materials and process solutions for leading-edge chipmakers, have reached a non-binding preliminary memorandum of terms (PMT) to provide the company with up to $75 million in proposed federal incentives under the CHIPS and Science Act. President Biden signed the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act to usher in a new era of semiconductor manufacturing in the United States, bringing with it a revitalized domestic supply chain, good-paying jobs, and investments in the industries of the future. The proposed investment would onshore critical semiconductor supply chain and manufacturing materials for leading-edge chip production and create nearly 600 direct manufacturing jobs over a period of several years and approximately 500 construction jobs by 2030.

“As the Biden-Harris Administration is revitalizing America’s semiconductor manufacturing industry, we’re not just bringing leading-edge chip technology and fabs to the United States, we’re also bolstering the suppliers that make leading-edge manufacturing possible,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo. “Thanks to President Biden’s leadership, we are working to onshore and expand critical pieces of the semiconductor supply chain, and create quality, good-paying jobs for Americans in the process.”

“President Biden continues to Invest in America by delivering good-paying jobs, strengthening our supply chains, and rebuilding our economy from the middle-out and bottom up. Today’s announcement would create over 1,100 new jobs in Colorado that will help power America’s semiconductor industry and drive American competitiveness,” said White House Deputy Chief of Staff Natalie Quillian. “Thanks to the President’s CHIPS and Science Act, Colorado Springs and communities across the country are playing an essential role in America’s manufacturing renaissance.”

Entegris is a leading supplier of advanced materials and process solutions for the semiconductor and other high-technology industries. Notably, the company invented the Front Opening Unified Pods (FOUPs), which are the highly specialized containers that secure semiconductor wafers while they are handled and transported during the manufacturing process. These internal transportation systems have dramatically enhanced the productivity of semiconductor manufacturing over the last two decades, with some of the world’s largest chipmakers, like Intel, TSMC, Micron, and GlobalFoundries, being major customers for these carriers. Entegris is also a global leader in the production of advanced membranes, chemical filters, and chemical storage drums that help with contamination control and the purification of processing chemicals in the production process. As semiconductor technology continues to become more advanced, demand for these materials is rapidly increasing.

“We are excited to be working with the Department of Commerce to help achieve the goal of strengthening the U.S. semiconductor industry infrastructure,” said Entegris President and Chief Executive Officer Bertrand Loy. “This proposed federal support would help further position us to respond quickly to meet the needs of our customers, the leading chip manufacturers, while also re-establishing Colorado as a major technology hub.”

The proposed CHIPS investment would support Entegris’ construction of its state-of-the-art manufacturing center in Colorado Springs. The center is being built in multiple phases: the first to support production of FOUPs—which are currently entirely produced abroad—and liquid filter membranes, and the second phase to support the production of advanced liquid filters and purifiers as well as fluid handling solutions. In addition to the manufacturing center, Entegris is also committed to further expanding their R&D capabilities in the United States by the end of the decade.

Entegris is partnering with Microchip Technology Inc., Pikes Peak State College, Pikes Peak Business, and Education Alliance, as well as various school districts and universities, to collaborate on workforce development and create a self-sustaining ecosystem in Colorado Springs and the Mountain West region. Entegris will also designate their project as a Military Center of Excellence that aims to recruit 50% of its entire project workforce from Veteran and military families through partnerships with Hiring our Heroes, Mt. Carmel Veterans Service Center, the SEMI Veteran Foundation, and local military bases.

In addition, according to Entegris, the construction and operation of the facility will align with Entegris’ comprehensive Corporate Social Responsibility framework, emphasizing environmental sustainability. Entegris has established a sustainability goal to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions (both type 1 and 2) by 42% by 2030 from the 2020 baseline. Entegris also plans to include facility designs that prioritize water recovery and recycling measures to reduce dependency on freshwater and to recycle 80% of process water. 

The company has indicated that it plans to claim the Department of the Treasury’s Investment Tax Credit, which is expected to be up to 25% of qualified capital expenditures. As explained in its first Notice of Funding Opportunity, the Department may offer applicants a PMT on a non-binding basis after satisfactory completion of the merit review of a full application. The PMT outlines key terms for a potential CHIPS incentives award, including the amount and form of the award. The award amounts are subject to due diligence and negotiation of award documents and are conditional on the achievement of certain milestones. After the PMT is signed, the Department begins a comprehensive due diligence process on the proposed projects and continues negotiating or refining certain terms with the applicant. The terms contained in any final award documents may differ from the terms of the PMT being announced today.

About CHIPS for America

CHIPS for America has announced up to $29.5 billion in proposed funding across eleven preliminary memoranda of terms to revitalize America’s semiconductor industry. These proposed CHIPS for America investments are already delivering significant results, including unlocking more than $300 billion in public and private investment between now and the end of the decade -- far and away the most investment in new production in the history of the U.S. semiconductor industry.

Earlier this year, Secretary Raimondo announced that we anticipate that America will produce 20% of the world’s leading-edge chips by the end of the decade, meaning our innovation capacity will no longer be as vulnerable to supply chain disruptions as it is today. The Semiconductor Industry Association released a report saying that America is on track to triple its domestic semiconductor manufacturing capacity from 2022 – when the CHIPS and Science Act was enacted – to 2032. The projected 204% growth is the largest projected percent increase in the world over that time.

With these announcements, America now has four of the world’s five leading-edge companies aggressively expanding on our shores. No other economy in the world has more than two of these companies producing leading-edge chips on its shores.

The Department has received more than 665 statements of interest, more than 167 pre-applications and 89 full applications for NOFO 1, and more than 160 small supplier concept plans for NOFO 2. The Department is continuing to conduct rigorous evaluation of applications to determine which projects will advance U.S. national and economic security, attract more private capital, and deliver other economic benefits to the country. The announcement with Entegris is the eleventh PMT announcement the Department of Commerce has made under the CHIPS and Science Act, with additional PMT announcements expected to follow throughout 2024.

CHIPS for America is part of President Biden’s economic plan to invest in America, stimulate private sector investment, create good-paying jobs, make more in the United States, and revitalize communities left behind. CHIPS for America includes the CHIPS Program Office, responsible for manufacturing incentives, and the CHIPS Research and Development Office, responsible for R&D programs, that both sit within the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) at the Department of Commerce. NIST promotes U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards, and technology in ways that enhance economic security and improve our quality of life. NIST is uniquely positioned to successfully administer the CHIPS for America program because of the bureau’s strong relationships with U.S. industries, its deep understanding of the semiconductor ecosystem, and its reputation as fair and trusted. Visit https://www.chips.gov to learn more. 

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