Wolfspeed Selects North Carolina for World’s Largest Silicon Carbide Materials Facility
September 09 2022 - 10:15AM
Business Wire
Wolfspeed to increase Materials capacity by
more than 10x
Silicon Carbide Materials manufacturing
facility to be located in Chatham County, strategically located
near existing Durham Materials factory
Company expands partnership with NC A&T to
foster next generation of Silicon Carbide experts
Wolfspeed, Inc. (NYSE: WOLF), the global leader in Silicon
Carbide technology, today announced it will build a new,
state-of-the-art, multi-billion-dollar Materials manufacturing
facility in Chatham County, North Carolina. The investment is
targeted to generate a more than 10 fold increase from Wolfspeed’s
current Silicon Carbide production capacity on its Durham campus,
supporting the company’s long-term growth strategy, accelerating
the adoption of Silicon Carbide semiconductors across a wide array
of end-markets and unlocking a new era of energy efficiency.
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Wolfspeed selects Chatham County, North
Carolina for world's largest Silicon Carbide Materials facility.
(Photo: Business Wire)
“Wolfspeed is the industry leader in supplying the materials
required to meet the accelerating demand for next generation
semiconductors and creating a more sustainable future for all.
Demand for our products continues to grow at a rapid pace, and the
industry continues to be supply constrained. Expanding our
Materials production will further our market leadership and allow
us to better serve the growing needs of our customers,” said Gregg
Lowe, President and CEO of Wolfspeed. “We are particularly excited
and proud to not only expand Wolfspeed’s footprint in our home
state of North Carolina, but also further our relationship with
North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University to
nurture our best-in-class talent pool.”
The facility will primarily produce 200mm Silicon Carbide
wafers, which are 1.7x larger than 150mm wafers, translating into
more chips per wafer and ultimately, lower device costs. These
wafers will be used to supply Wolfspeed’s Mohawk Valley Fab, which
opened earlier this year as the world’s first, largest and only
fully automated 200mm Silicon Carbide fabrication facility.
Phase one construction is anticipated to be completed in 2024
and cost approximately $1.3 billion. Between 2024 and the end of
the decade, the company will add additional capacity as needed,
eventually occupying more than one million square feet on the
445-acre site.
State and local funding, including a Job Development Investment
Grant from the North Carolina Department of Commerce, will support
the development of the facility’s first phase and represents an
approximately $1.0 billion incentive package from the State, County
and local governments. In addition, the company hopes to apply for
and obtain federal funding from the CHIPS and Science Act to
accelerate the construction and build-out of the facility. Over the
next eight years, the company intends to continue to invest,
looking to create roughly 1,800 jobs.
“Wolfspeed’s decision further validates North Carolina as the
epicenter of clean energy,” said North Carolina Governor Roy
Cooper. “This is another milestone in our drive toward a clean
energy economy as it will boost electric vehicle manufacturing and
offshore wind while fighting climate change and putting money in
the pockets of every day North Carolinians with great paying
jobs.”
The company’s talent development strategy is complemented by its
continued partnership with North Carolina Agricultural and
Technical State University (N.C. A&T). In 2020, Wolfspeed
committed $4 million over five years to the HBCU – at the time, the
single largest donation in the university’s history, to create the
Wolfspeed Endowed Scholars Program. The two entities aim to
establish comprehensive education and training curricula and
cutting-edge research and innovation programs. This partnership
will open opportunities for undergraduate and graduate credentials
in Silicon Carbide semiconductor manufacturing, as well as training
and career advancement programs for existing semiconductor
manufacturing workers.
“North Carolina A&T is proud to partner with Wolfspeed to
provide new opportunities to pursue the next generation of careers
in the green economy, drive innovation and explore new
possibilities,” said N.C. A&T Chancellor Harold L. Martin, Sr.
“Throughout our rich history as a doctoral, land-grant university
and the largest historically Black university in the country, we
have believed in the power of our students to change the world. Our
expanded partnership with Wolfspeed will allow us to change the
world together, and I am incredibly excited for what is to
come.”
About Wolfspeed, Inc.:
Wolfspeed (NYSE: WOLF) leads the market in the worldwide
adoption of Silicon Carbide and gallium nitride (GaN) technologies.
We provide industry-leading solutions for efficient energy
consumption and a sustainable future. Wolfspeed’s product families
include Silicon Carbide materials, power devices and RF devices
targeted for various applications such as electric vehicles, fast
charging, 5G, renewable energy and storage, and aerospace and
defense. We unleash the power of possibilities through hard work,
collaboration and a passion for innovation. Learn more at
www.wolfspeed.com.
Wolfspeed® is a registered trademark of Wolfspeed, Inc.
Forward Looking Statements:
This press release contains forward-looking statements by
Wolfspeed involving risks and uncertainties, both known and
unknown, that may cause Wolfspeed’s actual results to differ
materially from those indicated. Actual results may differ
materially due to a number of factors, including the risk that
Wolfspeed may encounter delays or other difficulties in
constructing and/or ramping up production in this new Materials
factory on time, at the projected costs, with the anticipated job
creation and to the extent of the anticipated production levels or
at all; risks associated with the transition of high volume
production from 150mm to 200mm wafers; the continued pace of the
transition to using Silicon Carbide devices in electric vehicles
and other industrial uses; Wolfspeed’s ability to develop and
design Silicon Carbide devices that will continue to improve
performance in broad markets; the risk that Wolfspeed may be unable
to manufacture its products with sufficiently low cost to offer
them at competitive prices or with acceptable margins; the risk
that demand for Silicon Carbide will not grow as Wolfspeed expects;
the rapid development of new technology and competing products that
may impair demand or render Wolfspeed’s products obsolete; and
other factors discussed in Wolfspeed’s filings with the Securities
and Exchange Commission, including its report on Form 10-K for the
year ended June 26, 2022, and subsequent filings. For additional
product and company information, please refer to
www.wolfspeed.com.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220909005276/en/
Media Relations: Melinda Walker Director, Corporate
Communications 818-261-4585 media@wolfspeed.com
Investor Relations: Tyler Gronbach VP, Investor Relations
919-407-4820 investorrelations@wolfspeed.com
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