Micron Technology Inc is considering to spend as much as US$160 billion on a new semiconductor factory in central Texas.
The company filed applications with the Texas Comptroller’s office to lock down property-tax breaks in exchange for a potential new facility near Lockhart, an exurb 48km south of Austin.
It would be built in eight phases with construction beginning in January next, the application showed.
There is no guarantee that Micron will make an investment of that magnitude, and a company spokeswoman declined to comment on the potential spending.
However, companies like Micron are rushing to file applications before a tax-break program known as Chapter 313 expires at the end of this year. That way they would have the incentives if they do decide to go ahead with the plans.
“We have not made any final decisions regarding the location, timing or scope of any expansion,” Micron spokeswoman Moira Whalen said in an e-mail. “Filing these applications now allows us to preserve options for potential future expansion needed to meet long-term memory demand.”
Texas has seen a record number of applications under Chapter 313 this year. South Korean chipmaker Samsung Electronics Co filed multiple applications for potential plants in Austin and Taylor, although the company said there were no specific plans to build at this time.
In its application, Micron said Texas’ high property taxes are a disincentive for developers and that the tax break would be a determining factor in its decision to locate the facility in the state.
“Thus, in the absence of a Chapter 313 value limitation agreement, the economic rate of return on this project would be greater in locations outside the state of Texas,” the application said.
Last year, Micron announced it would spend US$150 billion over the next decade on plants, as well as on research and development.
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