Analog Devices Announces €630 Million Investment in Irish Plant
Global semi-conductor leader Analog Devices Inc. (ADI) has announced a €630 million investment at its Next Generation Semiconductor R&D and Manufacturing Facility in Limerick, Ireland. The investment is expected to result in 600 new jobs and the tripling of wafer production capacity at ADI’s European regional headquarters. It will involve the construction of a new, state-of-the-art, 45,000 sq-ft Research & Development and manufacturing facility. The new facility is intended to help accelerate advances in cutting-edge applications, including digital biology, electric vehicles, and robotics
The investment is expected to triple ADI’s European wafer production capacity and aligns with the company’s goal of doubling its internal manufacturing capacity to enhance the resiliency of its global supply chain and better serve customer needs.
ADI CEO and Chair Vincent Roche, said, ‘Since 1976, Ireland has been a critical innovation center for ADI, thanks to its strong academic and research organizations, business ecosystem, and progressive government leadership. This next-generation semiconductor manufacturing facility and expanded R&D team will further extend ADI Limerick’s global influence.’
Today’s announcement comes a year after ADI announced a separate investment of €100 million in ADI Catalyst, its 100,000 sq-ft custom-built facility for innovation and collaboration at its Limerick campus. Ireland is also home to ADI’s main European Research and Development Center, which has generated more than 1,000 patents since its inception and has seeded ADI R&D sites throughout Europe in Spain, Italy, UK, Romania, and Germany.
The new investment is planned as part of a collaboration within the European Union’s Important Projects of Common European Interest (IPCEI) on Microelectronics and Communication initiative and will support cross-border collaborative research. ADI’s IPCEI application – Ireland’s first since the inception of the IPCEI initiative – is subject to final approval from the European Commission, and is supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland, Ireland’s agency for the attraction of foreign investment to the country.
Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI) are large-scale, multi-country European projects that are of significant benefit to the EU economy, its citizens, economic growth, sustainability, and value creation. IPCEI are aimed at allowing Member States to support state-of-the-art innovation to address market or systemic failures in particular sectors. The first IPCEI on Microelectronics began in 2018 and aims to complete its projects by 2024. The second IPCEI on Microelectronics is in its final stages of approval and is aimed at supporting Europe’s ambition to achieve semiconductor supply chain sovereignty. Ireland is one of 20 EU Member States participating.
