Broadcom to invest in a $1 billion EU-funded chip programme in Spain

US chipmaker Broadcom (AVGO.O) will invest in a European Union-funded programme to develop a semiconductor industry in Spain, Chief Executive Charlie Kawwas said late on Thursday.

“Excited to announce our decision to invest in Spain’s semiconductor ecosystem under their semiconductor support program,” Kawwas said on his Twitter account.

The project in which Broadcom would be involved could be worth $1 billion, the Spanish economy ministry said in an emailed statement. Broadcom did not say how much it would invest.

The project would include the construction of “large-scale back-end semiconductors facilities unique in Europe”, the ministry said, adding no location had been picked yet.

The Spanish government has said it would allocate as much as 12 billion euros ($13 billion) from the European Union’s pandemic relief funds it is set to receive to subsidise the development of the semiconductor industry.

Prior to Broadcom, the Spanish government had said US tech giant Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO.O) was planning to open a new chip design centre in the northeastern Spanish city of Barcelona.

The EU is seeking to reinforce its own chip industry and reduce its dependence on US and Asian supply, triggered by a global shortage of semiconductors and supply chain bottlenecks.

($1 = 0.9188 euros)