According to a report by HeraldDemocrat, a local media in Texas, Texas Instruments filed an application for a property value limitation with the Sherman Independent School District, confirming that Sherman is a finalist site for a proposed multi-billion dollar production plant.
“Given the long-term trend of semiconductors growth in electronics, TI has a roadmap that continues to strengthen our manufacturing and technology competitive advantage for the next 10 – 15 years to give us lower costs and greater control of our supply chain,” a spokesperson for TI said in August. “As part of our long-term capacity planning, we are evaluating options for a future factory with the potential for expansion over time to meet the growing needs of our customers. Sherman, Texas is one of the possible options we are considering.”
The report stated that the new facility would replace the existing facility in Sherman, which is one of only two facilities in the company that still produce 150-millimeter silicon wafers.
The new facility would focus on creating advanced 300-millimeter Semiconductor wafers that would then be assembled into finished semiconductors and sold for use in industrial, automotive, communications and personal electronics production.
“The existing facility is wholly incapable of being used in any way to manufacture 300-mm wafers,” the application said. “… The existing building structure is too small and cannot house 300-mm tools and equipment. No elements of the existing facility will be used for the construction or operation of the new proposed facility, and there will be no interconnection between the two.”
The new facility, which would be built out over four phases across more than 547 acres of land surrounding its current facility.
The report pointed out that TI is proposing to build the new facility in four potential phases. The first phase would see construction begin in 2022 with equipment installation in 2024. Production will is expected to begin by 2025. TI expects the first phase will see $6.5 billion in investment.
The second, third and fourth phases would begin construction in 2028 at the same time. However, operations at the sites are expected to begin in 2031,3036 and 2039, respectively.
These additional phases are expected to see $7.5 billion, $7.6 billion and 8.3 billion for a total proposed investment of $29.4 billion.