Intel has installed production tools at Fab 62 in Arizona and provided an update on its Ohio chip fab, as it expands advanced U.S. semiconductor manufacturing capacity.

Intel announced on Wednesday that it has begun installing production tools at Fab 62 in Arizona, and that the fab remains on track for mass production by late 2028. The company also reported progress on its Ohio One manufacturing complex and confirmed that it has integrated High-NA EUV lithography into high-volume manufacturing (HVM). Intel continues to invest in its leading-edge process technology R&D, advanced packaging, and photomask production in the U.S., which it says puts the company ahead of the competition.

"There is an important difference between technologies made in America and technologies that are truly American-made," wrote Naga Chandrasekaran, executive vice president and chief technology and operations officer, Intel Foundry. "The difference lies in the research and development process that transforms ideas into manufacturable technologies."

**Fab 62 moves toward operations in 2028**

Intel completed construction of the Fab 62 shell some time ago, and it is now installing production tools. The company expects the facility to become operational before the end of 2028, but it has not disclosed when high-volume production will begin or which process nodes the fab will run.

Intel has not officially assigned Intel 14A to Fab 62, although the facility has been discussed as a potential site for that node. When Intel announced Fab 52 and Fab 62 in Arizona, it said both would manufacture its most advanced process technologies, including Intel 20A (2nm-class) and 18A (1.8nm-class). Intel later designated Fab 52 for Intel 18A manufacturing, but Fab 62 remains unassigned.

Based on Intel's manufacturing roadmap disclosed earlier this year, Fab 62 will be able to produce chips on the 18A, 18A-P, and 14A nodes. Intel currently manufactures 18A chips at neighboring Fab 52, and Fab 62 could potentially add either more 18A capacity or capacity for the next-generation 14A process. Intel has yet to confirm its plans for the facility.

Fab 62 will be the sixth high-volume semiconductor manufacturing fab at the Ocotillo campus, which has served as one of the company's primary production sites for decades. Intel has not disclosed the facility's planned wafer processing capacity or the capital expenditure required to complete it. Still, the installation of production equipment shows that the project has moved beyond building construction. The new fab will expand Intel's manufacturing footprint in Arizona, where the company already produces leading-edge processors and operates advanced packaging, assembly, and test facilities.

**Intel confirms High-NA EUV in mass production**

Intel was the first chipmaker to install a commercial High-NA EUV scanner, at its D1X fab near Hillsboro, Oregon. It has since integrated the tool into high-volume manufacturing to produce its Panther Lake and other chips.

The Gordon Moore Park at Ronler Acres in Oregon is where Intel develops its most advanced logic process technologies and begins volume production of its latest processors. Using High-NA EUV to produce select tiles for Panther Lake CPUs at D1X is a natural fit for a development fab, as it helps Intel better understand how these systems work. Intel has not explicitly confirmed it, but High-NA EUV scanners appear to currently produce the same circuits as Low-NA EUV machines, so next-generation lithography does not necessarily offer significant advantages over existing scanners for now.

**Ohio One reaches another construction milestone**

Intel has also made progress on its Ohio One manufacturing complex in New Albany, Ohio. Construction workers recently installed the first major structural truss at the site's first semiconductor fab, a milestone in the development of the company's manufacturing operations in the state. The project is a key part of Intel's long-term strategy to expand domestic production of chips using leading-edge process technologies.

Intel did not provide an updated construction schedule for Ohio One or say when the first fab will begin operations. It also did not reveal which process technology the facility will eventually use or its estimated manufacturing capacity. While continued construction is positive, the announcement does not clarify when Ohio One will contribute to Intel's output.

**Other U.S. investments**

Beyond leading-edge manufacturing, Intel continues to invest in advanced packaging. Oregon serves as the company's main research and development center for advanced logic and 3D interconnect technologies, while Arizona hosts advanced packaging R&D, assembly, and test operations. Intel uses its New Mexico site to produce complex multi-chiplet processors that rely on advanced packaging methods, from the EMIB technology to next-generation EMIB-T and Foveros.

Intel also recently broke ground on a new photomask manufacturing facility in Santa Clara, California. The facility will be an important part of Intel's U.S. supply chain, as Intel will be the only chipmaker in America to develop and produce chips on leading-edge nodes entirely within the U.S. Intel notes that Samsung and TSMC currently lack leading-edge process R&D in America, do not operate their own photomask facilities in the U.S., and that Samsung has abandoned its plan to build an advanced packaging facility in Texas. Intel still depends critically on tools from Europe and materials from Japan, but even as its major rivals invest hundreds of billions of dollars in U.S. production capacity, Intel says it remains ahead.

To highlight its American supply chain, Intel disclosed that its U.S. operations involve more than 4,500 suppliers across 49 states, and that its annual domestic expenditures exceed $29 billion. The company stressed that domestic semiconductor leadership requires not only wafer fabrication capacity but also research, process development, advanced packaging, and a comprehensive supply chain.