CINDE announces: Intel invests US$350 million in Latin America

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Dec 11, 2020, 09:00 ET

The investment in Intel Costa Rica accounts for the creation of 200 new jobs
With the start of the assembly & test operations, Costa Rica becomes the only site in the Americas to perform this process
Costa Rica plays a critical role in the creation of microprocessors

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica, Dec. 11, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Intel announced an investment of US $350 million over the next three years to start assembly & test operations in Costa Rica. The investment is expected to create over 200 new jobs in the upcoming months; we anticipate the beginning of these operations towards the second half of 2021.

"The existing infrastructure, the synergy with operations already in place at the site, our talent, the free-zone regime and the legal environment, have given Intel a favorable option to expand its assembly & test capacity to Costa Rica", said Ileana Rojas, General Manager at Intel Costa Rica.

Within the microprocessor manufacturing process, semiconductor material wafers are sent to assembly & test. Every microprocessor is assembled in a package that protects it and enables it to connect to other components. Finally, its functionality is tested. It is a key process in chip production.

With the start of operations, Intel Costa Rica joins the Kulim site in Malaysia, the Chengdu plant in China, and the site in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, which are the only Intel sites to perform global assembly & test operations, turning Intel Costa Rica into the first Latin American country site to perform such process.

"The fact that Costa Rica has become stronger as a trustworthy destination for investment amid the pandemic is a very powerful signal. Furthermore, it shows that the country builds long-term relationships with investors, since we have over two decades of history working together with Intel. An investment of this size deepens Intel's footprint and opens very significant job opportunities for people with different work profiles who will be able to join worldwide exports produced by the Costa Rican talent", said Carlos Alvarado, President of Costa Rica.

Assembly and test operations will be carried out at the Intel Costa Rica campus in San Antonio de Belén and will start in the second half of 2021. Assembly and test operations are part of Intel's Manufacturing and Operations Organization.

Intel in Costa Rica: high-value operations

The assembly and test process adds to the high-value operations in place at Intel in Costa Rica, currently employing over 2,100 people. The operations are divided into two large centers:

The Research and Development (R&D) Center. It is currently the largest R&D in the country, engaged with designing, prototyping, testing, and validating integrated circuits solutions.
The Global Services Center. It performs multifunctional tasks that support finances, human resources, sales and marketing, quality, and IT around the world.

The new jobs will be created in engineering areas and there will also be opportunities for technicians in fields including electronics, electro-mechanics, among others. Job opportunities will be published on www.intel.com/jobs.

SOURCE CINDE