Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) confirmed it still plans to build a multi-billion-dollar factory in Ohio after U.S. Senator Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) sent a letter to Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan last week requesting an update on the delayed project, according to Bloomberg.
“We continue to work closely with local stakeholders, the Ohio congressional delegation and the state of Ohio to advance the needs of the state and Intel’s priorities,” said an Intel spokesperson, according to the report. The project, known as Ohio One, “remains an important part of our long-term plans to expand leading-edge manufacturing on US soil.”
Moreno raised concerns over the length of time it is taking to start construction of the plant, citing public incentives given to the company.
“State and local officials moved mountains to assist your company in achieving the company-proclaimed original timeline for opening in 2025,” Moreno wrote. “Ohio gave your company $2 billion worth of public incentives and developed significant newly constructed public infrastructure amounting to at least $691 million. Yet, in 2024, Intel announced that it was cutting 30 percent of its workforce, delaying the project a second time, and that the first factory would not open until 2030 at the earliest—five years after the publicly announced original opening of 2025.”
He also mentioned power generation capacity reserved for Intel, which could be used by other interested entities, including Meta Platforms (META).
“Additionally, I request that your company cease from continuing to pass additional infrastructure costs to the ratepayers in Ohio due to a lack of efficient use of your excess power,” he added. “As you know, Meta requested that your company temporarily reassign approximately 200MW of power for its use. Given the continuous delays in the project, it is in the best interest of Ohio’s hardworking taxpayers to offset any infrastructure costs by reassigning remaining power that is not utilized by Intel to entities who are interested in utilizing it, such as Meta.”
Intel has recently drawn massive investments from the public and private sectors. The company disclosed late on Monday that it had completed the issuance and sale of 86.95M shares to SoftBank (OTCPK:SFTBY)(OTCPK:SFTBF) at $23 per share. In August, the Trump administration took an $11.1B stake in Intel, though the company warned that the U.S. investment could harm its operations in other countries. Earlier this month, Intel and Nvidia (NVDA) signed a deal that would see the duo co-develop PC and data center chips. Simultaneously, Nvidia said it would take a $5B stake in Intel.