Intel to Acquire GlobalFoundries for $30 Billion

Intel entered talks to acquire semiconductor company GlobalFoundries. The deal could be valued at $30 billion.

The Wall Street Journal wrote Intel is exploring the move, although talks are not at an advanced stage and GlobalFoundries could still proceed with a planned IPO. The company is owned by Mubadala Investment, an arm of the Abu Dhabi government which is based in the US.

For Intel, striking a deal for GlobalFoundries would go some way towards fulfilling a long-term ambition to boost chip manufacturing for other companies, during a global semiconductor shortage which impacted production of a range of products from smartphones to cars. In March, Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger said the company would up its chip activities, with the company also pledging $20 billion to expand manufacturing in the US.

GlobalFoundries itself is a major chip production company, created in 2008 when AMD spun off its production operations. The company is expanding its operations to tap into the global semiconductor shortage, investing $4 billion in Singapore earlier this year. A $30 billion deal for GlobalFoundries would be Intel’s biggest to date, trumping the $15.4 billion acquisition of Altera in 2015.It would also add to a string of recent tie-ups in the semiconductor space, including Nvidia’s proposed $40 billion buy of Arm.