Infinera could secure up to $93 million in CHIPS and Science Act funding from the Department of Commerce under a signed non-binding preliminary memorandum of terms.
The Commerce Department said Thursday Infinera plans to use the proposed CHIPS funding to support the construction of a new fab in San Jose, California, to increase the production of indium phosphide-based photonic integrated circuits, or InP PICs.
InP PICs are key components in optical network communications that help speed up the transfer of large data volumes in communications spanning broadband networks and data centers.
The funding will also enable the company to build a new test and packaging facility in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, to meet the rising demand for InP PICs.
The proposed facility would include a research and development space focused on new optical packaging technologies and the proposed projects are expected to generate up to 1,200 construction jobs and 500 manufacturing jobs.
“The Biden-Harris Administration is taking meaningful steps towards achieving the economic and national security goals of the CHIPS and Science Act with proposed investments like this one, which will help us secure semiconductor manufacturing projects and create high-tech jobs across the country,” said Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.