The U.S. Department of Commerce has awarded Hemlock Semiconductor (HSC) up to $325 million in direct funding under the CHIPS Incentives Program’s Funding Opportunity for Commercial Fabrication facilities.
HSC is the sole U.S.-owned manufacturer of hyper-pure polysilicon — and one of only five companies in the world producing polysilicon to the purity level needed to serve the leading-edge semiconductor market.
Polysilicon, a key raw material in the manufacturing of solar panels, is a crucial component for solar cell production.
The award will go towards building a new manufacturing facility in Hemlock, Michigan. It will create around 180 manufacturing jobs and over 1,000 construction jobs.
The CHIPS Incentives Program aims to catalyze long-term economically sustainable growth in the domestic semiconductor industry in support of U.S. economic and national security.
“CHIPS for America’s investment in HSC will help advance supply chain security by ensuring the U.S. has a reliable, domestic supply of polysilicon – the bedrock of semiconductors,” said U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, in a statement. “Establishing a domestic source of these materials is important for development of leading-edge chip applications, which helps bolster our economic and national security. Through targeted investments like this, the Biden-Harris Administration is driving technological innovation in industries of the future and creating jobs across the country.”
The Department plans on releasing the funds based on HSC’s completion of project milestones; CHIPS for America will track the performance of each award via financial and programmatic reports.
Learn more here.