Polar Semiconductor, a manufacturer of analog and power semiconductor devices and sensors, has booked a $123 million contract from the U.S. Department of Commerce to expand and modernize its manufacturing facility.
The Commerce Department said Tuesday the award, the first under the CHIPS Incentives Program’s Funding Opportunity for Commercial Fabrication Facilities, is intended to double the production of sensors and power chips at Polar’s Bloomington, Minnesota facility within two years.
The award is part of a $525 million investment from private, state and federal sources to turn Polar from mostly foreign-owned to majority U.S.-owned. It is also expected to generate over 160 new jobs in Minnesota.
The funds will be allocated when the company completes specific project milestones.
President Joe Biden emphasized that the CHIPS and Science Act, part of the administration’s Investing in America agenda, will revitalize American leadership in semiconductors and strengthen supply chains and national security.
“Polar’s new facility will also be completed under a Project Labor Agreement to support its construction workforce, creating good-quality union jobs in Bloomington, Minnesota,” Biden said.
Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo remarked, “The Biden-Harris Administration’s investment in Polar will create a new U.S.-owned foundry for sensor and power semiconductors and modernize and expand Polar’s facilities in Minnesota, strengthening our national and economic security, bolstering our supply chains, and creating quality jobs.”
Surya Iyer, president and chief operating officer of Polar Semiconductor, commented, “Through our collaborative and sustained workforce development efforts, we expect to support customers with highly skilled employees today and into the future.”