Intel announced that Apollo Global Management, a massive American investment firm with assets under management totaling $550 billion, has acquired a 49% stake in the new chip manufacturing plant, Fab 34, in Ireland.
The construction of the new era chip manufacturing plant incurs escalating costs, leading to the point where the factory owners could no longer sustain the investment alone. In the past, we have witnessed various government efforts from different countries to support the capital in this field, such as the CHIPS Act from the United States (which Intel recently received funding from), the European Chips Act, Japan, South Korea’s K-Chips Act, China’s ICF Fund, and Malaysia’s national semiconductor plan.
Another avenue for funding is through private sector investment, as seen in the news of Apollo investing $11 billion in Intel’s plant in Leixlip, Ireland. The facility is responsible for producing chips utilizing Intel 4 and Intel 3 processes (currently producing Core Ultra chips using Intel 4 process with EUV machines since September 2023, and gearing up to manufacture Granite Rapids chips with Intel 3 process soon).
Apollo’s funding has provided Intel with added flexibility, as they no longer have to fund the entire construction of the plant on their own, aligning with Intel’s financial strategy termed Smart Capital. Apollo’s arm states that this investment marks the largest private sector investment in the chip industry.
Source – Intel
**TLDR:** Apollo Global Management acquires a 49% stake in Intel’s chip manufacturing plant in Ireland, providing funding and support for the high-cost construction of the facility.
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