Infineon Technologies Moves Forward with Major Semiconductor Expansion in Henrico County

HENRICO COUNTY - Governor Mark R. Warner today announced that semiconductor manufacturer Infineon Technologies Richmond will move forward with long-delayed plans to expand its Henrico County facility and produce 300-mm wafers. The company first announced an earlier version of the project with the Commonwealth in 2000, but market conditions delayed the expansion. In the first build-out phase, Infineon will add 800 jobs in Richmond -- and when fully built out, the expansion will create a total of 1,200 new jobs with an investment exceeding $1 billion. Infineon Technologies Richmond currently employs 1,700 people.

“Infineon's decision to expand its capacity here is a strong affirmation of the talent and professionalism of our workforce and the competitiveness of Virginia as a location for high-tech manufacturing," said Governor Warner. “We were all disappointed when the original project announced in 2000 did not go forward. But we didn't give up. We stayed in close touch with Infineon and worked hard to ‘re-recruit’ this expansion. I met with their top executives when I was in Germany one year ago. Soon after I returned from that meeting, I toured the Henrico plant and discussed the potential expansion with Henry Becker, their terrific Virginia manager. And the Virginia Economic Development Partnership has worked closely with the company to help bring this deal to fruition.”

“Throughout our history of operations in Richmond, the Commonwealth of Virginia has been a great partner in supporting the development of Infineon by providing performance based grants, training assistance and support for higher education,” said Robert LeFort, President of Infineon Technologies North America Corp. “The excellent infrastructure and state-of-the art manufacturing expertise at Richmond enables us to quickly bring 300mm capacity on line in a way that is consistent with our corporate capital expenditure plans and thus make this the fastest and most cost effective way for us to respond to changing market conditions.”

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) has fostered a long-term relationship with Infineon Technologies since the company first located in Virginia as White Oak Semiconductor in 1996. VEDP has regularly marketed Virginia to the semiconductor industry and meets with executives at Semicon West in San Francisco each July. 

As part of the negotiated incentive package, legislation will be proposed to modify the existing performance grant to reflect the new completion schedule. A grant from the Governor’s Opportunity Fund of $3 million was approved to assist Henrico County with the project. Infineon Technologies Richmond also qualifies for a Major Business Facility Job Tax Credit, a statutory incentive available to all qualifying companies. The company will take advantage of the Virginia Department of Business Assistance’s Workforce Services Program. The Greater Richmond Partnership and the Henrico County Economic Development Authority worked with VEDP to assist Infineon with its decision.