Intel reportedly moves ahead
with 300-mm fab in Oregon
By Jack Robertson
SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Intel Corp. here has decided to go ahead with
its delayed 300-mm development fab in Hillsboro, Ore., and next month the
company plans to announce a ten-year, $10 billion program to fund IC
production on the larger wafer diameters, according to sources today.
Intel's 300-mm development fab was put on hold last April after the
company decided production tools were not ready in 1998. Intel then
decided to revisit the decision at the end of 1998, and now it has apparently
determined the time it right to restart the $1.5 billion pilot line project.
A spokesman for Intel in Hillsboro said he was unaware of any decision to
announce 300-mm plans but that the fab continues to be evaluated. "The
facility is nearly completed, but the next phase remains in a state of
'suspended animation,'" he added.
When the 300-mm development fab does begin its work, the facility will
focus on 0.13-micron process technologies. Intel is expected to restart the
Hillsboro fab project later this year and eventually expand the facility into its
initial 300-mm production plant, according to the sources. Next month's
announcement will cover a full-blown Intel plan to expand 300-mm
production in multiple plants over the next decade.
Intel's commitment to 300-mm is expected to help revive the chip industry's
lagging interest in 300-mm wafers. Chip makers around the world have
delayed 300-mm plans partly because of a lack of production-worthy tools,
but mostly because of a severe glut of 200-mm fab capacity. To date, only
Siemens AG and Motorola Inc.'s Semiconductor Products Sector have
jointly set up a joint-venture 300-mm pilot line in Dresden, Germany.
One major equipment firm, Applied Materials Inc., reportedly will reinstitute
its own 300-mm program, based on a large order for equipment from Intel
for the new Oregon fab. Along with the rest of industry, Applied froze its
300-mm program early last year when chip makers backed away from
launching even pilot lines.
All material on this site Copyright © 1998 CMP Media Inc. |
