Wolfspeed announces North Carolina materials plant project

Wolfspeed, Inc, (NYSE: WOLF), which opened its Marcy silicon-carbide fabrication facility earlier this year, announced it will build a new materials-manufacturing facility in Chatham County, North Carolina.

The $1.3 billion investment will provide a 10-fold increase over the company’s current silicon-carbide production capacity on its Durham campus.

Wolfspeed expects to finish phase-one construction in 2024. The company will add additional capacity as needed through the end of the decade, with the facility eventually topping one million square feet on the 445-acre site.

The facility will primarily produce 200mm silicon-carbide wafers which are 1.7 times larger than 150mm wafers. This translates to more chips per wafer and, ultimately, lower device costs. The wafers will better supply the company’s Mohawk Valley Fab in Marcy, which currently employs more than 300 people.

Wolfspeed received a $1 billion incentive package from the state government of North Carolina including a Job Development Investment Grand from the North Carolina Department of Commerce as well as funding from county and local governments. The company hopes to obtain federal funding from the CHIPS and Science Act to accelerate the construction and build-out of the facility.

Over the next eight years, Wolfspeed expects to create about 1,800 jobs at the new North Carolina facility.

The company will also further its relationship with North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University to nurture the talent pool. In 2020, Wolfspeed committed $4 million over five years to create the Wolfspeed Endowed Scholars Program.

Headquartered in North Carolina, Wolfspeed produces silicon-carbide wafers for components used in devices such as electric vehicles, fast chargers, 5G applications, and the renewable energy, aerospace, and defense industries.