Arizona-based Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC)'s recent announcement of a second chip plant in Arizona and increased investment in the state from $12 billion to $40 billion will be a large boost to the local economy, Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego said in a social media post.
TSMC said in a news release that the company, Arizona's largest foreign investor, plans to increase advanced chip production, including its N4 process technology in 2024 and 3nm process technology in 2026. TSMC's second site in Arizona, already under construction, is expected to begin production in 2026.
"TSMC announced this morning that they will now be bringing both 3 and 4nm process technology to their #PHX fab, plus investing in a second fab – an overall $40B investment in the company’s AZ operations," Gallego said in her Twitter post the same day. "This is one of the largest foreign direct investments in US history."
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego
| Phoenix.gov
Gallego attended an opening ceremony that celebrated the arrival of the first batch of state-of-the-art semiconductor manufacturing equipment and during which TSMC's announcements were publicly made. Others attending the opening ceremony were President Joe Biden, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey and TSMC leaders, customers, suppliers, partners, government officials and members of academia.
What's good in Phoenix is good for the nation, Biden said during his remarks.
"American manufacturing is back, folks," Biden said before a large banner that read "A Future Made in America Phoenix, AZ."
About 10,000 construction workers helped build TSMC's first site and now is at work on the second location. Both are expected to indirectly create an additional 10,000 high-paying, high-tech jobs and 4,500 from directly within TSMC.
"When complete, TSMC Arizona aims be the greenest semiconductor manufacturing facility in the United States, producing the most advanced semiconductor process technology in the country, enabling next generation high-performance and low-power computing products for years to come," TSMC Chairman Dr. Mark Liu said in the news release. "We are thankful for the continual collaboration that has brought us here and are pleased to work with our partners in the United States to serve as a base for semiconductor innovation."