GlobalFoundries announced in June it has
obtained clearance from the Committee on Foreign
Investment in the United States (CFIUS)
for its proposed acquisition of IBM’s microelectronics
business announced last October.
With the conclusion of the CFIUS review,
the companies have completed the regulatory
process in the U.S., the company said in a statement.
All necessary regulatory approvals outside
the U.S. were previously received.
The transaction is expected to close in the
near future, officials said.
Company officials said they have created a
“Northeast Tech Corridor.” The Fishkill facility
will be named Fab 10, and the Vermont plant
will be named Fab 9. The one in Malta is Fab 8.
GlobalFoundries, which has a microchip fabrication
plant in Malta, will have primary access
to the research that results from this investment
through joint collaboration at the Colleges of
Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE),
SUNY Polytechnic Institute, in Albany.
As part of the agreement, GlobalFoundries
gains substantial intellectual property including
thousands of patents, making GlobalFoundries
the holder of one of the largest semiconductor
patent portfolios in the world, the company said.
Company officials also said it will benefit from
an influx of one of the best technical teams in
the semiconductor industry, which will solidify
its path to advanced process geometries at 10nm
and below. Additionally, the acquisition opens up
business opportunities in industry-leading radio
frequency (RF) and specialty technologies and
ASIC design capabilities.
“This acquisition solidifies GlobalFoundries’
leadership position in semiconductor technology
development and manufacturing,” said Dr.
Sanjay Jha, CEO, GlobalFoundries, last fall. “We
can now offer our customers a broader range of
differentiated leading-edge 3D transistor and RF
technologies, and we will also improve our design
ecosystem to accelerate time-to-revenue for our
customers. This acquisition further strengthens
advanced manufacturing in the United States,
and builds on established relationships in New
York and Vermont.”
GlobalFoundries will also acquire IBM’s
commercial microelectronics business, which
includes ASIC and specialty foundry, manufacturing
and related operations and sales.
GlobalFoundries plans to invest to grow these
businesses.
GlobalFoundries a semiconductor foundry
launched in March 2009. According to company
officials, it has achieved scale as the second largest
foundry in the world, providing a combination
of advanced technology and manufacturing
to more than 160 customers. With operations
in Singapore, Germany and the United States,
GlobalFoundries is the only foundry that offers
the flexibility and security of manufacturing
centers spanning three continents.
Its global manufacturing footprint is supported
by major facilities for research, development
and design enablement located near hubs
of semiconductor activity in the United States,
Europe and Asia. GlobalFoundries is owned by
the Mubadala Development Co. For more information,
visit www.GlobalFoundries.com.