Apple To Be First And Largest Customer Of Amkor's $2 Bln Chip Packaging Plant

(RTTNews) - Apple Inc. announced it will be the first and largest customer of Amkor Technology, Inc.'s new $2 billion advanced silicon manufacturing and packaging facility being developed in Peoria, Arizona. The expanded partnership supports the tech major's efforts to manufacture its products in the United States.

With its new advanced packaging and test facility, Amkor, a provider of semiconductor packaging and test services, said it is enabling a resilient domestic semiconductor supply chain.

The new facility, which is expected to employ around 2,000 people upon completion, will package Apple silicon produced at the nearby Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd. or TSMC fab, where Apple is also the largest customer.

Upon completion, the new facility would be the largest outsourced advanced packaging facility in the U.S.

For the plant, Amkor has secured around 55 acres of land with intent to build a state-of-the-art manufacturing campus with more than 500,000 square feet of clean room space. It is expected that the first phase of the manufacturing plant would be ready for production within the next two to three years.

According to Amkor, it is the only US-headquartered outsourced semiconductor assembly and test or OSAT service provider with advanced packaging technology capability and high-volume manufacturing experience.

Jeff Williams, Apple's chief operating officer, said, "Apple is deeply committed to the future of American manufacturing, and we'll continue to expand our investment here in the United States.... Apple and Amkor have worked together for more than a decade packaging chips used extensively in all Apple products, and we are thrilled that this partnership will now deliver the largest OSAT advanced packaging facility in the United States."

Arizona Senator Mark Kelly added that Amkor's $2 billion project will create good-paying jobs, strengthen local economy, and help protect national security, as well as help reduce dependence on other countries in the microchip supply chain.

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo recently highlighted advanced packaging as a major area of focus for the US government's effort to rebuild American semiconductor manufacturing. According to the Commerce Department, developing robust advanced manufacturing capacity and capability is a key priority and essential to the success of the CHIPS program.

Apple in 2021 had committed to invest $430 billion in the U.S. economy over five years. The company is expecting to meet its target through direct spend with American suppliers, data center investments, capital expenditures in the U.S., and other domestic spend.

Amkor further said it has applied for funding for the new facility from CHIPS and Science Act, which was established to boost US competitiveness, innovation, and national security in the semiconductor industry.