Intel has agreed in principle to build a new manufacturing plant in Israel as part of a push by the US semiconductor maker and its chip peers to diversify their production sources.
The preliminary deal was announced by Israel’s Finance Ministry and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday.
Intel confirmed the company’s “intention to expand manufacturing capacity in Israel”, where it is already active, but did not specify the terms of the deal or provide other details.
The plant will be for wafer fabrication, a segment in which Israel is already one of Intel’s four major providers, according to a source.
The expansion will further an effort by Intel chief executive Pat Gelsinger to locate more manufacturing outside of Asia, which dominates chip production.
He is also striving to restore the chip pioneer’s technological leadership after companies such as Nvidia and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company eclipsed its capabilities.
While Mr Netanyahu put the value of the deal at $25 billion, which he said was the largest foreign investment in Israel and an “expression of confidence” in the nation’s economy, the source said the total included a previous $10 billion investment announced in 2021.
According to Israeli officials, the project will add thousands of jobs to the about 12,000 workers now employed by Intel in the country.
The new plant – to join an existing one in Kiryat Gat, south of Tel Aviv – is expected to begin operations by 2027 and remain active until at least 2035, the ministry said.
As part of the agreement, Intel will pay a 7.5 per cent tax rate in Israel instead of the 5 per cent it pays now.
Sunday’s announcement caps a busy time for the chip industry. Intel on Friday announced a $4.6 billion plant in Wroclaw, Poland.
Another US chip maker, Micron Technology, is close to an agreement to commit at least $1 billion towards setting up a semiconductor packaging factory in India.
The development plans highlight the global race to diversify supplies of critical components amid US trade tension with China.
Companies are also taking advantage of subsidies from foreign governments eager to make sure the supply of chips in their own territories is safe and attracts jobs.
As part of the agreement with Israel, Intel will probably be eligible for a significant government grant representing 12.8 per cent of its total investment.
The US is doling out about $52 billion in incentives as part of the Chips and Science Act passed last year. And Europe is making a similar effort.
Intel is set to receive about $11 billion in subsidies from the German government for a chip manufacturing complex in the eastern part of the country.
The company also continues to expand in Leixlip, Ireland, spending an additional €12 billion ($13 billion).
It plans to double the manufacturing space there to bring so-called Intel 4 process technology to Europe and offer more foundry services – contract production for other companies.
Once complete, this expansion will bring Intel’s total investment in Ireland to more than €30 billion.
Mr Gelsinger is making bold expansion bets at a time when the storied chip maker is struggling. The personal computer market is mired in a slump, and the company’s peers have pushed into its lucrative data-centre turf.
Nvidia, whose chips help to power artificial intelligence computing, is now the star of the semiconductor industry.
After passing Intel in market capitalisation in 2020, Nvidia now has a valuation of more than $1 trillion – compared with about $150 billion for Intel.
In Israel, Intel also has been working to complete the acquisition of the country’s Tower Semiconductor, a deal announced more than a year ago.
Intel is counting on that $5.4 billion transaction to help bolster its position in the chip foundry industry – where TSMC dominates.
Intel has been operating in Israel since 1974 and has R&D centres in Haifa, Jerusalem, Yakum and Petah Tikva, as well as an existing factory in Kiryat Gat, which the company calls its “most advanced manufacturing facility”.
Intel’s Jerusalem plant is the global development centre for Mobileye, its self-driving business.
Santa Clara, California-based Intel said its intention to expand “is driven by our commitment to meeting future manufacturing needs and supporting Intel’s IDM 2.0 strategy, and we appreciate the continued support of the Israeli government”.
The strategy, unveiled after Mr Gelsinger took the helm in 2021, was touted as an “evolution of Intel’s integrated device manufacturing model” that would see the company become a provider of foundry capacity in the US and Europe, as well as an expanded use of external foundries for some of its products.
The specs
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Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm
Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh130,000
On sale: now
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
The major Hashd factions linked to Iran:
Badr Organisation: Seen as the most militarily capable faction in the Hashd. Iraqi Shiite exiles opposed to Saddam Hussein set up the group in Tehran in the early 1980s as the Badr Corps under the supervision of the Iran Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). The militia exalts Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei but intermittently cooperated with the US military.
Saraya Al Salam (Peace Brigade): Comprised of former members of the officially defunct Mahdi Army, a militia that was commanded by Iraqi cleric Moqtada Al Sadr and fought US and Iraqi government and other forces between 2004 and 2008. As part of a political overhaul aimed as casting Mr Al Sadr as a more nationalist and less sectarian figure, the cleric formed Saraya Al Salam in 2014. The group’s relations with Iran has been volatile.
Kataeb Hezbollah: The group, which is fighting on behalf of the Bashar Al Assad government in Syria, traces its origins to attacks on US forces in Iraq in 2004 and adopts a tough stance against Washington, calling the United States “the enemy of humanity”.
Asaeb Ahl Al Haq: An offshoot of the Mahdi Army active in Syria. Asaeb Ahl Al Haq’s leader Qais al Khazali was a student of Mr Al Moqtada’s late father Mohammed Sadeq Al Sadr, a prominent Shiite cleric who was killed during Saddam Hussein’s rule.
Harakat Hezbollah Al Nujaba: Formed in 2013 to fight alongside Mr Al Assad’s loyalists in Syria before joining the Hashd. The group is seen as among the most ideological and sectarian-driven Hashd militias in Syria and is the major recruiter of foreign fighters to Syria.
Saraya Al Khorasani: The ICRG formed Saraya Al Khorasani in the mid-1990s and the group is seen as the most ideologically attached to Iran among Tehran’s satellites in Iraq.
(Source: The Wilson Centre, the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Barings Bank
Barings, one of Britain’s oldest investment banks, was
founded in 1762 and operated for 233 years before it went bust after a trading
scandal.
Barings Bank collapsed in February 1995 following colossal
losses caused by rogue trader Nick Lesson.
Leeson gambled more than $1 billion in speculative trades,
wiping out the venerable merchant bank’s cash reserves.
more from Janine di Giovanni
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 640hp
Torque: 760nm
On sale: 2026
Price: Not announced yet
LA LIGA FIXTURES
Saturday (All UAE kick-off times)
Valencia v Atletico Madrid (midnight)
Mallorca v Alaves (4pm)
Barcelona v Getafe (7pm)
Villarreal v Levante (9.30pm)
Sunday
Granada v Real Volladolid (midnight)
Sevilla v Espanyol (3pm)
Leganes v Real Betis (5pm)
Eibar v Real Sociedad (7pm)
Athletic Bilbao v Osasuna (9.30pm)
Monday
Real Madrid v Celta Vigo (midnight)
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
Roll%20of%20Honour%2C%20men%E2%80%99s%20domestic%20rugby%20season
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At a glance
Fixtures All matches start at 9.30am, at ICC Academy, Dubai. Admission is free
Thursday UAE v Ireland; Saturday UAE v Ireland; Jan 21 UAE v Scotland; Jan 23 UAE v Scotland
UAE squad Rohan Mustafa (c), Ashfaq Ahmed, Ghulam Shabber, Rameez Shahzad, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Adnan Mufti, Shaiman Anwar, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Qadeer Ahmed, Mohammed Naveed, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20IPAD%20PRO%20(12.9%22%2C%202022)
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Two-step truce
The UN-brokered ceasefire deal for Hodeidah will be implemented in two stages, with the first to be completed before the New Year begins, according to the Arab Coalition supporting the Yemeni government.
By midnight on December 31, the Houthi rebels will have to withdraw from the ports of Hodeidah, Ras Issa and Al Saqef, coalition officials told The National.
The second stage will be the complete withdrawal of all pro-government forces and rebels from Hodeidah city, to be completed by midnight on January 7.
The process is to be overseen by a Redeployment Co-ordination Committee (RCC) comprising UN monitors and representatives of the government and the rebels.
The agreement also calls the deployment of UN-supervised neutral forces in the city and the establishment of humanitarian corridors to ensure distribution of aid across the country.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Prophets of Rage
(Fantasy Records)
