Intel Affirms Plan for Ohio Project After US Senator’s Pressure

Then-President Joe Biden speaks at the groundbreaking of the new Intel semiconductor manufacturing facility near New Albany, Ohio, on Sept. 9, 2022.

(Bloomberg) -- Intel Corp. said that it remains committed to its plans for a sprawling chip manufacturing plant in Ohio after Republican US Senator Bernie Moreno pressed the company for more information about delays in the multibillion-dollar project.

In a letter last week to Intel Chief Executive Officer Lip-Bu Tan, Moreno demanded an update on the projected timeline for completing the factory outside Columbus that’s been delayed until at least 2030, well past the originally expected opening this year. The senator also requested an assessment of the economic impact to Ohio from the delays and gave the company 10 days for a response.

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When asked about Moreno’s letter, the company said in a statement Tuesday that it remained “committed to advancing US technology and manufacturing leadership.”Then-President Joe Biden speaks at the groundbreaking of the new Intel semiconductor manufacturing facility near New Albany, Ohio, on Sept. 9, 2022. Photographer: Gaelen Morse/Bloomberg

“We continue to work closely with local stakeholders, the Ohio congressional delegation and the state of Ohio to advance the needs of the state and Intel’s priorities,” the company said in the statement provided by a spokesperson. The project, dubbed Ohio One, “remains an important part of our long-term plans to expand leading-edge manufacturing on US soil.”

Moreno’s demands for information about the Columbus plant emerged a month after the US government moved to acquire what’s expected to become a 10% stake in the struggling chipmaker under a plan backed by President Donald Trump. That investment materialized last month within days following a meeting between Trump and Tan at the White House, with the president taking credit for pressing the company into offering the government equity.

Shares of Intel are up more than 66% this year, propelled by the US investment as well as agreements with Nvidia Corp. and SoftBank Group Corp. to take stakes in the company.

Intel announced in February that it would push back the opening of its Ohio site to 2030. The decision marked a blow to the company’s comeback bid and threatened to undermine the broader US goal of expanding manufacturing through the bipartisan Chips and Science Act signed by then-President Joe Biden in 2022. Biden attended the plant’s ground-breaking that year.

In his letter, Moreno said he wanted to “ensure that the ratepayers and taxpayers in the state of Ohio are not being taken advantage of and to ensure that this investment is not a charade or worse potential fraud.” He also asked for a proposal for how Intel could “mitigate any expense” for Ohio and state taxpayers associated with delays in the plant.

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The company’s response Tuesday did not address the questions about the economic impact from the plant’s delay and possible compensation for the state. Moreno said the state had provided $2 billion in public incentives along with nearly $700 million in new infrastructure.

Intel, struggling with shrinking sales and mounting losses, has been scaling back efforts to add more manufacturing capacity. The Ohio site has been a symbol of the company’s hopes for a turnaround — and a broader US push to rebuild the country’s domestic chip production. Intel has had ambitions to turn it into the world’s largest semiconductor facility.

In its statement Tuesday, Intel said that it would “continue to have flexibility to adjust timelines based on customer demand.”

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