U.S. Semiconductor Plant Construction Advances, Other Work Slows Down

Written by Danny Levin, Deputy Editor for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)

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Summary

Amid President Donald Trump's push to boost domestic semiconductor production, major related construction projects are moving forward, while others are being delayed.

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Federal Government Purchases Stake in Intel

Perhaps the most direct example of President Donald Trump's efforts to reshore semiconductor manufacturing is the federal government's August purchase of a 10% stake in Intel Corporation (Santa Clara, California).

Intel said the stake, which was worth $8.9 billion, would be funded by $5.7 billion in the CHIPS and Science Act funding previously awarded but not yet paid to the company, as well as $3.2 billion awarded to the company as part of the Secure Enclave program. The program is designed to expand semiconductor production specifically for the federal government. Intel added it has received $2.2 billion in funding under the act to date.

Then-president Joe Biden signed the act into law in 2022, setting aside $53 billion in incentives for manufacturing as well as research and development (R&D). Of that, $39 billion would be allocated as subsidies for building new facilities.

The Intel development marks a change in Trump's stance on the CHIPS Act. In his March speech to a joint session of Congress, he called the act "a horrible, horrible thing," adding "you should get rid of the CHIPS Act, and whatever's left over...you should use it to reduce debt, or any other reason you want to."

In Intel's third-quarter earnings conference call on October 24, Chief Executive Officer Lip-Bu Tan said that the government support "highlights Intel's strategic role as the only U.S.-based semiconductor company with leading-edge logic R&D and manufacturing. We are fully committed to advancing the Trump administration's vision of restoring semiconductor production and proudly welcome the U.S. government as an essential partner in our efforts."

The White House's purchase came just days after SoftBank Group (Tokyo, Japan) agreed to purchase $2 billion worth of Intel common stock.

Intel is Expected to Reduce Capital Plan

Also in October's call, Chief Financial Officer Dave Zinsner reiterated Intel anticipates 2025 gross capital investment will be approximately $18 billion, which is lower than the initial guidance of around $23 billion. Intel's gross capex refers to "GAAP [generally accepted accounting principles] additions to property, plant, and equipment."

Executives did not discuss spending plans for 2026, but in July's second-quarter earnings call--released before the partnership with the government--they indicated capital spending would be lower next year. "The capacity investments we made over the last several years were well ahead of demand and were unwise and excessive," Tan said. Zinsner added "that while further reductions in 2025 are challenging due to existing purchasing commitments, we will continue to work to reduce capital spending in 2026."

For more information, see August 20, 2025, article - Intel Signs Agreement to Receive $2 Billion Stock Equity Investment.

Tan added the company would "further slow the pace of construction in Ohio to ensure our spending is aligned with market demand." Industrial Info is tracking two semiconductor fabrication (fab) centers under construction in New Albany, which could begin production in the 2030s.

Those are two of the five active projects worth $35 billion attributed to Intel in the U.S., according to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Industrial Manufacturing Project Database. Subscribers can view a full list of the project reports.

Angela Hudson, Industrial Info's vice president of North America Industrial Manufacturing, notes "growth in artificial intelligence compute, data-center expansion, and high-performance computing is set to drive significant demand for advanced logic and memory chips across the semiconductor industry."

"Bottom line: the market is expected to grow strongly in 2026 with projected revenues reaching the $190 billion range," she continued. "This expansion will be fueled by increased demand for integrated circuits (ICs), advanced memory and rising levels of local manufacturing. Investment in equipment and advanced packaging capacity further indicates that the industry is not only experiencing strong end-market demand but is also building the local supply capability needed to support sustained growth."

Other Major Semiconductor Plant Construction

Two other major players investing in the U.S. are overseas-based Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (TSMC) (Hsinchu, Tawain) and U.S.-based Micron Technology Incorporated (Boise, Idaho).

In Micron's latest earnings call in September, Chief Executive Officer Sanjay Mehrotra said investment for front-end equipment used in the production of dynamic random access memory (DRAM) memory chips and semiconductor fab construction will drive higher spending in 2026. Chief Financial Officer Mark Murphy projected first-quarter fiscal 2026 capital spending of approximately $4.5 billion, up from approximately $3 billion year-over-year.

Micron is constructing a $30 billion expansion at its Fab 4 Memory and Semiconductors Manufacturing Campus in Boise, Idaho. On the earnings call, Satya Kumar, vice president of investor relations, said the company received a CHIPS Act grant for the project--with the first wafer output expected in the second half of calendar-year 2027.

However, last month the company revealed it plans to push back construction of its multi-billion-dollar, multi-phase semiconductor fab in New York. According to the project's final environmental impact report, the facility is expected to open in 2030, instead of 2028, and subsequent phases are pushed back through 2041. Site preparation work is still slated to commence this year, according to the document.

"Based on construction timelines experience(d) across the semiconductor industry for greenfield fabs in the United States, Micron has updated our projected operational milestones," the company said in a statement to NewsChannel 9 WSYR Syracuse. "We are well-positioned to proceed with confidence."

Subscribers can view a full list of Micron's active project reports.

Micron will report its latest earnings results on December 17.

In March, Taiwan-based TSMC expanded its investment in U.S. semiconductors at its Pheonix, Arizona, site, from $65 billion to $165 billion. It would include three new fabs, two advanced packaging facilities and a major R&D center.

At a related event at the White House, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said the increased investment is due to efforts to reshore manufacturing in the wake of Trump's tariff policies. "They can come here because they can avoid paying tariffs," he said, adding "if they did them in Taiwan to send them here, they'll have 25% or 30% or 50% or whatever the number may be someday. It will go only up."

The first two phases of the fab expansion are underway and expected to wrap up in 2028 and 2031, respectively, while three subsequent projects could follow. Subscribers can read the related project reports.

In TSMC's third-quarter earnings call in October, Chief Executive Officer C.C. Wei said the company continues to speed up the capacity expansion in Arizona. "We are making tangible progress and executing well to our plan."

Trump Expected to Delay Planned Semiconductor Tariffs

In August, Trump said the U.S. would impose a 100% tariff on imported semiconductors, but companies already building or planning to build semiconductor plants in the U.S., such as TSMC, would be exempt. However, on November 19, Reuters reported "U.S. government authorities recently conveyed to government and industry stakeholders within days that semiconductor tariffs may not be imposed immediately."

This comes as the U.S. aims to avoid provoking China, now that the two sides have reached a trade agreement, and the administration presumably worries about impacts to consumer prices for electronics.

Subscribers to the GMI Project and Plant databases can click here for a full list of detailed reports for projects mentioned in this article, and click here for a full list of related plant profiles.

Subscribers can see a full list of active semiconductor projects across the U.S., according to Industrial Info's project database.

Key Takeaways

• Construction of some U.S. semiconductor manufacturing plants is advancing, while other work is being delayed.
• As Trump aims to incentivize companies, investment in domestic semiconductor plants is expected to continue.
• Industrial Info is tracking $165 billion worth of active semiconductor manufacturing projects in the U.S.

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About Industrial Info Resources
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) platform helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking more than 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).