Apple supplier TSMC confirms plans to build a chip factory in Arizona

It was expected to arrive on Friday, and now it has: Apple supplier TSMC has confirmed it’s moving forward with a planet opening in the United States.

It was just yesterday that The Wall Street Journal reported that TSMC, one of Apple’s biggest suppliers and the company behind the manufacturing process for Apple’s A-series processors, was going to announce plans to open a brand new chip factory in the state of Arizona. In that report, it was believed that, following a confirmation by TSMC’s board earlier this week a formal announcement of the plans would arrive on Friday. And now TSMC has made good on that expectation, officially announcing plans to open the new chip plant in the United States.

Additional details in the initial report were also confirmed by the supplier today, too, including the fact that this chip plant will focus on the 5nm manufacturing process. Apple is expected to use a 5nm chip for the A14 (Bionic) later this year when they unveil the iPhone 12 lineup, but this factory won’t have its doors open for a few years still.

This facility, which will be built in Arizona, will utilize TSMC’s 5-nanometer technology for semiconductor wafer fabrication, have a 20,000 semiconductor wafer per month capacity, create over 1,600 high-tech professional jobs directly, and thousands of indirect jobs in the semiconductor ecosystem. Construction is planned to start in 2021 with production targeted to begin in 2024. TSMC’s total spending on this project, including capital expenditure, will be approximately US$12 billion from 2021 to 2029. This U.S. facility not only enables us to better support our customers and partners, it also gives us more opportunities to attract global talents. This project is of critical, strategic importance to a vibrant and competitive U.S. semiconductor ecosystem that enables leading U.S. companies to fabricate their cutting-edge semiconductor products within the United States and benefit from the proximity of a world-class semiconductor foundry and ecosystem.

TSMC is expecting to spend upwards of $12 billion all the way to 2029. The opening of the plant will lead to 1,600 jobs being created in the state. This will be the second manufacturing plant for TSMC in the United States.