Investors hope a Canadian private capital giant will help revitalise Intel — with a little additional support from the US government. This week the beleaguered semiconductor company announced that it would partner with the infrastructure affiliate of Brookfield Asset Management to spend up to $30bn building two chip fabrication plants in Arizona.
Intel is a large, mature company that must keep shareholders placated with a decent dividend. But it also wants to improve its market position against the likes of Taiwan’s TSMC and other Asian rivals with better technology. Its plan includes entry into the so-called foundry or “fab” business, manufacturing chips for design-only firms.
Along with Brookfield’s multibillion-dollar firepower, Intel stands to benefit from the recent Chips Act signed by President Biden. This provides federal support for a domestic US semiconductor market. Intel’s share of that bounty is substantial. Now all it needs to do is execute on its strategy.