Biden to take victory lap in Ohio after passage of CHIPS Act

In This Article:

President Joe Biden is set to visit Ohio for the groundbreaking of Intel’s (INTC) long-awaited semiconductor manufacturing facility. It’s a victory lap of sorts after Biden signed the Chips and Science Act of 2022 into law in August, giving $50 billion to the chip industry.

Friday’s event will kick off construction of a $20 billion facility. While Intel announced the facility before the Chips bill passed, it could be the first step towards a $100 billion "full buildout" in Ohio over the coming decade partly made possible by the new law, Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger has said.

The Biden administration championed the passage of the CHIPS Act to encourage U.S. chip production after the pandemic spurred a nationwide chip shortage and exacerbated a supply chain crisis. Chips are used in everything from automobiles to mobile phones to home electronics.

The Ohio facility is “the biggest investment of its kind ever in our nation,” Biden said during a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday ahead of the trip. “We’re finally bringing home jobs that have been overseas for a while.”

Biden aides say chip makers are already planning for how they will spend CHIPS Act money.

“You’ve already seen chip companies making big announcements,” Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said this week, pointing to Intel, Micron (MU), and Globalwafers.

How and when the money will be distributed

The trip comes as the Biden administration has released more details on how it will distribute the $50 billion beginning in 2023, which will be available to both U.S. and foreign companies that build facilities in the U.S.

The Biden administration says companies will also be held to tight restrictions so the money doesn’t inadvertently help China or fund stock buybacks.

“We will use that clawback authority if, after giving the money to a company, they fail to start their project on time, fail to complete their project on time, fail to meet the commitments that they’ve made,” Raimondo said.

President Biden signs the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022 into law on August 9. (Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images) · (The Washington Post via Getty Images)

The U.S. has fallen behind places like Taiwan in semiconductor manufacturing in recent decades, especially on the most advanced chips. A recent report from the Semiconductor Industry Association found that 0% of the world’s most advanced logic semiconductors were manufactured in the U.S. in 2019.