14 DAY TRIAL // On Monday, the New York state economic development arm approved $1.2 billion in state incentives for an Advanced Micro Devices Inc. plant to be built in Malta. All five members of the Empire State Development Corp. were in favor of the deal, and took the decision at a special meeting in Manhattan.
The incentives regard a $4.6 billion “chip fab” in Malta, which is supposed to make computer chips for semiconductor companies, while employing around 1,465 people once it is completed. The exact location of the plant will be in the Luther Forest Technology Campus, about 10 miles north of Saratoga Springs.
Initially, the state offered the $1.2 billion in incentives (a combination of tax breaks and cash) to the Sunnyvale-based chip manufacturer AMD to build the plant, and the company officially committed to the plant in October.
In the meantime, AMD split into two companies, and its manufacturing arm is now The Foundry Co., which will build and operate the plant. This means that the economic development board had this time to vote whether to formally transfer the incentives from AMD to The Foundry Co. The manufacturing firm is a joint venture between AMD and Advanced Technology Investment Co., which is based in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates.
The vote on the assets was originally scheduled at a regular meeting last month, but the board postponed it because necessary paperwork was not ready. A public hearing regarding the incentives will be held on December 10th, at 1 p.m. at the Luther Forest site. Holding public hearings is a common action when the Empire State Development offers tax breaks for business projects.
The state Public Authorities Control Board also has to approve the transfer before it becomes official. That board’s next meeting is scheduled for December 17th.