The high-tech industry is getting a shot in the arm -- and the U.S. is getting thousands of new jobs -- all courtesy of Intel.
Paul Otellini, the CEO of Intel, announced Tuesday that his company planned to spend $6 billion to $8 billion on new chip manufacturing technology in its U.S. factories and will build a new development plant in Oregon.
"Every couple of years we have to make a decision whether we advance technology one more generation," Otellini told Fox News. "The investment is 6 to 8 billion dollars for this generation of technology -- it’ll build faster, cheaper, cooler, smaller chips that go into everything."
Intel said Tuesday the investment would create between 6,000 and 8,000 construction jobs and 800 to 1,000 permanent high-tech jobs across its U.S. operations in Oregon and Arizona. It also helps the company keep its current base of factory workers at its U.S. sites in these states.
Intel says its new Oregon facility is scheduled to start up in 2013.
"75% of our revenues are overseas, so there’s an incentive to [build there], but 75% of our high tech manufacturing is here in the U.S. -- and with this investment it stays that way," Otellini said.
Intel is the world's largest maker of microprocessors, the "brains" of computers. The company says three-fourths of its microprocessor manufacturing happens in the U.S.
Intel shares are slipped 10 cents to $19.09 in morning trading.
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