NEW YORK, Sept 1 — Semiconductor giant Micron announced today it will invest US$15 billion (RM67 billion) over the next decade to expand its operations in the US state of Idaho to build memory capacity for automotive and other sectors.

The plan, part of a Micron global investment strategy to invest US$150 billion, will create 17,000 new jobs, the Boise, Idaho-based company said.

The initiative, which Micron called the “largest private investment ever made in Idaho,” follows a Micron pledge last month to spend US$40 billion in “leading-edge memory manufacturing” in the United States.

The project will tap into state funds that are part of the US$52 billion to promote production of microchips included in the Chips and Science Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law on August 9.

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“Today’s announcement by Micron is another big win for America,” Biden said today in a statement that also highlighted announcements in recent days from Toyota to ramp up the production of batteries for electric vehicles, as well as plans unveiled by First Solar, Honda and Corning.

“In our future, we will make (electric vehicles), chips, fibre optics and other critical components here in America, and we will have an economy built from the bottom up and middle out,” Biden said. — AFP