Jan. 16—The ink is dry on an agreement to fund a planned expansion to the Corning plant in Canton — an agreement that will bring up to $32 million from the federal government to help build up a microchip manufacturing powerhouse in Northern New York.
This money has already been announced — but Thursday's move ensures the agreement is finalized and both Corning and the government are contractually bound to complete it.
"Today the feds signed the deal to say America's future glass for the semiconductor industry should be made in Canton, and not China," Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., said in a statement. "With the funding now signed and sealed, Corning's $315 million, 300-plus job investment can move forward knowing the funding will be secured for them no matter the administration."
Under the agreement, Corning is investing $315 million to expand its specialized glass manufacturing plant in Canton, which will allow it to produce more high purity fused silica and ultra-low expansion glass products — both of which are integral parts of ultraviolet lithograph machines used in microchip production. The U.S. government will provide $32 million in grant funding for the project.
The company will also invest $300,000 per year in the St. Lawrence County childcare training program, with an eye toward building a more sustainable childcare industry in the county to serve the expanded plant. The plant currently employes about 380 people, and will add another 130 unionized manufacturing jobs when expansion is complete. The construction project will employ about 175 people.
It's a supplementary project to the major, multi-billion dollar plan to build a new, state-of-the-art microchip manufacturing super-factory in Clay, just north of Syracuse. An agreement with Micron is providing $6.1 billion in federal money to the more than $100-billion project, which will take over a decade to build four manufacturing facilities that would employ 9,000 people and create over 40,000 expected spin-off jobs in support and service industries.
Schumer has been instrumental in shepherding these projects along. He wrote and pushed for the CHIPS and Science Act while he was Senate Majority Leader, and has helped navigate them through the federal approval process since the bill became law in 2022.
"Leader Schumer's visionary leadership, unwavering commitment and relentless dedication have been instrumental in strengthening the domestic semiconductor supply chain," said Wendell Weeks, Chair and CEO of Corning Inc. "This strategic investment will advance the continued growth of our Canton, New York facility, enabling us to expand the production of advanced optics components while creating good-paying manufacturing jobs."