Newport 5G Chip Facility Hopes To Make South Wales A Tech Hub For IoT

The Welsh government hopes a new £38 million facility in Newport will make South Wales a hub for the manufacturing of compound semiconductors that will power future technologies like 5G, driverless cars and the Internet of Things (IoT).

The devolved government is providing £12 million in funding and says the new plant could encourage up to £365 million of private investment over the next five years while creating 2,000 highly skilled jobs.

The BBC reports the total cost of the project will be £38 million.

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“I am delighted our initial £12m investment has kick-started the creation of the world’s first compound semiconductor industry cluster in Newport,” said First Minister Carwyn Jones.

“Our support for the Institute for Compound Semiconductor Technology has been widely recognised as the catalyst for developing this world-leading cluster, which is expected to create more than 2,000 well paid jobs and be the cornerstone of a truly transformative project for the area.

“Today’s major investment puts Wales at the cutting edge of this exciting technology, which has the ability to change the way we live. This is great news for Wales – and the first of many new exciting projects set to make a real difference to the economy of South East Wales.”

The project is part of a wider £1.2 billion City Deal agreed between the Welsh Assembly, the UK government and local authorities to encourage the technology industry in the principality.

The Welsh government recently allocated £9 million of EU funding for a £15m supercomputing facility and is seeking additional European cash for the rollout of superfast broadband.

A report last year claimed Wales was the fastest growing digital economy in the UK outside London.

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