Biden Awards Samsung $6.4 Billion To Build Computer Chip Plant In Central Texas

(NationalUSNews.com) — On Monday, April 15, the U.S. Commerce Department announced they would be awarding up to $6.4 billion in grants to a South Korean-based company, Samsung Electronics, to develop computer chip manufacturing and research facilities in Texas. The support comes from the CHIPS and Science Act, signed into law on August 9, 2022, which is intended to bring semiconductor manufacturing back to the U.S. and reduce reliance on overseas production.

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo says the project will put the nation on track to hit the goal of producing 20% of the world’s leading-edge chips in the United States by 2030. Over 17,000 construction jobs and 4,500 manufacturing jobs are expected to be generated by the plan. The first of two factories to be constructed is expected to be operational by 2026, with the second one following next year. Samsung will also be investing $40 billion in the project as well as claiming investment tax credits from the U.S. Treasury Department to further fund the ambitious project.

Lael Brainard, an economic adviser to the Biden administration, pointed out that by boosting the U.S. production of computer chips, which are used in many critical industries like aerospace, defense, and automobiles, the project will also be improving national security. Earlier this year, President Biden also announced plans to award grants to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (TSMC) for a large manufacturing project in Arizona and grants for the California-based company Intel for plants in Arizona, Ohio, Oregon, and New Mexico.

Republican Texas Senator John Cornyn praised the project for helping to secure a vital supply chain, improving national security, increasing global competitiveness, and creating new jobs in Texas. Bipartisan support of the Biden administration’s push to invest in semiconductor manufacturing based in the United States reflects the general support of the American populace, which has never approved of manufacturing being moved out of the country in the first place. The move to bring such a key sector back to the U.S. is exciting and hopefully the first of many steps to make America create again.