Amkor Begins Construction on Bigger Peoria Factory

Amkor Technology has broken ground on a supersized version of its planned factory in Peoria.

The Tempe-based semiconductor manufacturer has begun construction of its new factory in the Peoria Innovation Core after a last-minute site and size change, the Phoenix Business Journal reported.

Amkor previously planned to build a $2 billion semiconductor chip testing and packaging facility in the master-planned community of Vistancia, though the proposal faced pushback from residents, according to the Business Journal. On Aug. 28, the Peoria City Council approved a new location and development agreement.

The council’s decision came the day after the city won a state trust land auction for 834 acres in north Peoria where it’s been planning to create a technology and manufacturing hub known as the Peoria Innovation Core.

As part of the updated development agreement, Amkor receives a larger water allocation while also being required to increase its investment and employee count at the site. Its footprint for the plant was originally meant to span 500,000 square feet on 56 acres and has now quadrupled to about 2 million square feet on a 104-acre parcel.

The city of Peoria is responsible for constructing all public infrastructure at the new site, though Amkor is on the hook to reimburse the city for infrastructure costs up to about $31 million if local tax reimbursements and state tax incentives don’t cover all costs.

Amkor can start early construction on the new site prior to closing escrow on the land exchange agreement as part of its license agreement. Though local and state permits are still required, Peoria is granting temporary easements to allow Amkor to move onto the property.

At the same time, the city has agreed to pay about $2 million to build out public infrastructure at the previously proposed Amkor site in Vistancia as well as $33 million to build out infrastructure at the new Innovation Core site.

The Vistancia site won’t sit abandoned. Scottsdale-based HonorHealth has been approved to build an 8-acre medical district on a portion of the property within Five North at Vistancia, the Business Journal reported. — Chris Malone Méndez