Texas – Governor Greg Abbott announced that the sixth Texas Semiconductor Innovation Fund grant, totaling $7.87 million, has been awarded to DSM Semichem LLC to expand its specialty materials and chemicals facility in Plainview. The expansion increases DSM’s total capital investment in the facility to $176 million and is expected to create 40 new jobs.
“Texas is making strategic investments to ensure the stability of critical domestic supply chains for the technologies that fuel our economy,” Abbott said. “This $176 million total capital investment by DSM will double their production volume of specialty materials essential for semiconductor manufacturing in Texas. It will also create 40 good-paying jobs for Texans in a high-demand industry.”
DSM is a joint venture of Dongjin USA, Samsung C&T America, and Martin ELSA Investment LLC. The company produces electronic-level sulfuric acid (ELSA), a highly purified form of sulfuric acid used to clean wafers during semiconductor manufacturing without leaving impurities. This process is essential for producing chips used in high-performance computing, 5G, artificial intelligence, and defense applications.
DSM Semichem Managing Director Tae Yong An expressed gratitude for the grant, emphasizing its role in accelerating the expansion of the company’s Texas operations. “This funding will enable Texas to produce the highest quality ELSA in America and meet the increasing demand of domestic leading-edge fabs,” he said. “DSM will establish Texas as a central semiconductor material production hub and strengthen the U.S. semiconductor supply chain.”
State officials praised the investment for boosting Texas’ leadership in semiconductor manufacturing. Senator Charles Perry highlighted the expansion’s economic and national security benefits. “DSM’s expansion in Plainview strengthens our semiconductor manufacturing capabilities, bolsters national security, and brings high-quality jobs and major capital investment to West Texas,” he said.
The grant is part of Texas’ broader effort to secure supply chains and support domestic semiconductor production.