March 2001 - Nr. 3
Eastern Research Institute and Intel in Joint Chip Venture
TWIG - One of Germany’s two Frankfurts is well established as an international financial centre. The other Frankfurt took a large step this week toward becoming an international technology centre. The Institute for Semiconductor Physics (IHP: Institut für Halbleiterphysik) in Frankfurt an der Oder is teaming up with Intel in a new joint venture called Communicant Semiconductor Technologies. The IHP is contributing patents for promising chip technology its researchers developed, Intel is supplying the manufacturing know-how, and, as Brandenburg’s Economics Ministry announced, the government of Dubai has agreed after long negotiations to provide the lion’s share of the start-up capital. With funding now in place, the Communicant partners are ready to break ground for a DM 1.5 billion (U.S. $750 million) chip factory in Frankfurt. Production is slated to begin in early 2003, and the plant will have 1,500 employees on its payroll once in full operation. Brandenburg state officials expect Communicant’s presence in the eastern Frankfurt to spur the creation of another 1,500 jobs in the region. Economics Minister Wolfgang Fuerniß hailed the Communicant agreement a "breakthrough for Brandenburg’s technology policy" and said it stands as proof of eastern Germany’s high tech competitiveness.
