Sherman is set to be home to a sprawling new silicon wafer plant in a win that bolsters the city’s place as a hub of high-tech manufacturing.

Local firm GlobiTech, a subsidiary of Taiwan-based GlobalWafers, has selected the North Texas city as the site of its new $5 billion silicon wafer manufacturing facility at a time when a shortage of the product in the global market is contributing to inflation and supply chain issues.

“With the global chips shortage and ongoing geopolitical concerns, GlobalWafers is taking this opportunity to address the United States semiconductor supply chain resiliency issue,” said Doris HSU, chairman and CEO at GlobalWafers, in a statement.

New facility will create 1,500 jobs

Beating out two other potential sites in Ohio and South Korea, the 3.2 million square-foot Sherman facility will create 1,500 new jobs. To be built in four phases, with construction kicking off later this year, the new GlobiTech plant could eventually produce more than 1 million silicon wafers monthly when production begins by 2025. Adding to the 17 other manufacturing sites the company’s parent operates globally, the Sherman facility has the potential to generate between $5 million and $7 million in city revenue annually, The Dallas Morning News reports.

GlobiTech’s move is being aided by a $15 million grant from the Texas Enterprise Fund, a performance-based financial incentive aimed at “deal-closing” corporate projects. In addition, the Sherman Economic Development Corporation is awarding the company $20 million in cash incentives and more than $14 million in land, along with other breaks on taxes and municipal utility fees. According to the Wall Street Journal, the project could potentially land federal funding, pending the passage of legislation currently in front of Congress.

“This is another step by the state in highlighting Texas as a world leader in economic development, and Sherman is right in the heart of the advanced technology solutions growth,” said Tyson Bennet, superintendent at Sherman ISD, in a statement.

GlobiTech has been headquartered in Sherman since it was founded in 1999. It opened a second manufacturing plant in the city about a decade later, according to the DMN.

GlobiTech follows Texas Instruments’ $30B groundbreaking in Sherman in May

GlobiTech’s announcement comes just one month after Texas Instruments broke ground on its own new semiconductor wafer fabrication plants with a potential $30 billion investment for up to four facilities. TI’s move will create around 3,000 jobs. 

“Sherman has spent years building a business-friendly climate and laying the groundwork to support large employers,” Mayor David Plyler said in a statement. “Now, for the second time in less than a year, that investment has paid huge dividends.”

Tackling a global shortage

The move to build new chip-making capacity comes amid a global shortage of chips in the semiconductor industry, as demand for everything from cars to cellphones has outpaced the ability of manufacturers to keep pace. A number of larger manufacturers in the space have reported selling out of their product through at least 2026, and the lack of availability has been attributed to declining sales for companies, including Toyota and Apple.

“Advanced 300-millimeter silicon wafers are currently manufactured in Asia, forcing the U.S. semiconductor industry to rely on imported silicon wafers,” said Mark England, GlobiTech president, in a statement. “This exciting and bold investment in my hometown of Sherman will represent the first new silicon wafer facility in the U.S. in over two decades and close a critical semiconductor supply chain gap.”

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