One of the major reasons behind Micron’s decision to build a massive chip fab facility in Onondaga County has just become reality. Senator Chuck Schumer announced Thursday that Micron is expected to receive $6.1 billion from his CHIPS and Science Act.
“Two years ago, I promised Micron if they chose Syracuse and upstate New York, I'd deliver all the federal resources they needed to ensure that their huge vision would become a huge reality," Schumer said via Zoom with reporters. "And that is now the case.”
He says the federal incentive will spur tens of billions more dollars in investment from Micron and suppliers. CenterState CEO President Rob Simpson says the company made it clear early on that incentives from federal, state, and local governments would be needed. But he says Micron's commitment has never been in doubt.
“They were always going to get one of the largest awards from this CHIPS Act because they are doing something at a scale that is critical to our national security and to our economic competitiveness," Simpson said. "And what I think is exciting is that today we have yet another proof point that Central New York matters to our national security.”
Simpson says with this milestone behind us, much work lies ahead in terms of building housing, developing a workforce, and boosting our health care system.
“There's so much work to do that from my perspective, the skepticism around this project has held us back a little bit," Simpson said. "So I hope that this announcement helps some of those people who perhaps are a little skeptical. It's probably the best chance we will ever have to remake our economy in in a more modern form, and we would be crazy not to seize that moment.”
Senator Schumer says the potential transformation extends beyond Onondaga County.
"We've gotten investments in Albany and in Utica and in the Hudson Valley and in Rochester and in Buffalo," Schumer said. "So chip manufacturing, chip research and other related new activities making the lithium ion battery in Binghamton, just bringing upstate New York back to a place that it hasn't been in a very long time.”
Micron is expected to break ground sometime next year after environmental reviews are completed. Meanwhile, sources tell other media that President Biden is planning to visit Syracuse next Thursday to celebrate the news, but nothing has been confirmed.
