Recruitment is due to get under way in the coming months for 1,600 new jobs being created by Intel at its Leixlip plant in Co Kildare.
The chipmaker said the the recruitment will happen in stages over the coming years as the company completes construction of its new manufacturing facility.
The tech giant has invested 7 billion dollars (€5.9 billion) at the north Kildare campus over the past three years.
📍 Doubling Intel’s available manufacturing space in Europe
📍 $7 billion invested from 2019 to 2021
📍 Designed to bring Intel's 7nm process technology to the region
📍 1,600 permanent high-tech jobs
📍 Over 5,000 construction jobs
We're excited to help build the future. pic.twitter.com/s63mrZGbNY— Intel Ireland (@Intel_IRL) March 24, 2021
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Intel Ireland vice-president of manufacturing and operations and general manager Eamonn Sinnott said: “We are accelerating investment in Europe and supporting the EU’s ambition of having 20 per cent of the world’s cutting-edge chips manufactured locally.”
Intel employs more than 10,000 people across Europe, about 5,000 in Ireland.
About 4,500 work in Leixlip, while another 500 are in Cork and Shannon.
Mr Sinnott added: “Since 1989, we have invested 15 billion dollars in current manufacturing capacity in Europe, ensuring that Intel is one of the largest and most advanced semiconductor manufacturing operations in the region, but we’re not stopping there.
“In an effort to more than double Intel’s available manufacturing space in Ireland and Europe, we have invested an additional seven billion dollars from 2019 to 2021 in an ongoing expansion.
Today, our CEO @PGelsinger set the course for Intel to move into a new era of innovation & tech leadership. I'm excited to share details of how Intel is investing in Europe, paving the way for production of our leading edge 7nm technology in the region. https://t.co/kJcrgcAqlB pic.twitter.com/Ikf47PLzX4
— Eamonn Sinnott (@ESinnott) March 23, 2021
“This investment is designed to bring Intel’s latest generation 7nm process technology to the region and expand our manufacturing operations.
“It will also drive economic growth in the region, creating 1,600 permanent hi-tech jobs once complete and over 5,000 construction jobs.
“Furthermore, there will be additional opportunity for investment in the region.”
The company plans to announce another phase of expansion to support our a foundry business in the US, Europe and other global locations within a year.
The construction of the company’s new fabrication plant is about half-way through. It is expected to be another two to three years before it is completed and all 1,600 jobs are filled.
It is not yet known what the total investment in the Leixlip site will be at that stage.
Communications manager Sarah Sexton told Virgin Media News the new positions will be largely technical roles.
“They’ll be quite similar to the jobs we have here today which are largely technical roles, quite a few engineering type of roles right across the spectrum of engineering,” she said.
“Things like manufacturing technicians and support roles in things like facilities.”
Great news that @Intel_IRL is creating 1600 new jobs with an ambitious expansion of its Irish operations.
Intel has made a major contribution to Ireland since 1989 – and these high-tech roles will play an important role as we build the green and digital economy of the future. pic.twitter.com/KyOkM2kzOK— Micheál Martin (@MichealMartinTD) March 23, 2021
The Taoiseach welcomed the “ambitious expansion” of Intel’s Irish operations.
Micheál Martin said: “Intel has made a major contribution to Ireland since 1989 – and these hi-tech roles will play an important role as we build the green and digital economy of the future.”
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar described the jobs announcement as “another huge vote of confidence in Ireland’s future”.
