Intel acknowledged its plans for a mammoth investment in its Oregon research factories Wednesday, describing “a multibillion-dollar expansion and modernization of our facilities” aimed at restoring the company’s manufacturing lead.

The Oregonian reported last week that Intel had quietly filed plans for such an expansion with state regulators in July. Intel didn’t respond to a request for comment at the time or explain why it is planning to expand and upgrade its Oregon factories now.

The chipmaker offered a little more context Wednesday in an opinion piece by Al Thompson, Intel’s vice president for government affairs, posted on Intel’s website. Thompson hailed the passage of the $52 billion federal CHIPS Act a year ago. He said the federal money was helping enable billions of dollars in capital spending for previously announced projects in Arizona, New Mexico and Ohio.

Then, Thompson made Intel’s first public mention of its proposed Oregon expansion. He said billions of dollars in spending “will put the company on a path to regain process technology leadership and continue to advance Moore’s Law.” Moore’s Law is the maxim that predicts rapid growth in computing power from advances in semiconductor technology.

Confirmation of Intel’s Oregon expansion plans amounted to just a paragraph in Thompson’s commentary and offered no clues as to how quickly Intel plans to move.

Last month’s regulatory filings in Oregon are vague on timing, describing work stretching from 2025 to 2028. It’s not clear from the release whether Intel plans to complete its expansion within that time frame.

Intel didn’t respond Wednesday morning to a request for additional comment on its Oregon plans.

The July filings with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality detail upgrades to Intel’s 30-year-old D1A factory in Aloha and a fourth phase to Intel’s passive D1X research factory at its Gordon Moore Park campus near Hillsboro Stadium.

Gov. Tina Kotek notified state lawmakers last week that she plans to award $90 million from the Oregon CHIPS Act, approved during this year’s legislative session, to help fund an unspecified Intel project. Sources familiar with the funding say the money will go to the Oregon factory expansion described in the regulatory filings.

Intel hasn’t contacted Hillsboro planning officials to begin discussions on building permits for the proposed expansion, according to the city.

The company’s filings with state regulators last month say the new projects will double Intel’s Oregon greenhouse gas emissions and significantly increase emissions of other atmospheric pollutants. That will make Intel a “major source” of pollution under federal environmental laws, triggering additional review by Oregon and U.S. regulators.

Wednesday’s opinion article suggests Intel will also seek a share of the federal CHIPS Act money for the project. The Biden administration said Wednesday that more than 460 companies are seeking CHIPS Act money.

Intel is Oregon’s largest corporate employer, with more than 22,000 workers affiliated with its research, manufacturing and administrative offices in Washington County. Semiconductors are Oregon’s largest export, and Intel’s products account for most of that.

The company develops each new generation of its microprocessors in Hillsboro, then duplicates the manufacturing process at factories in Arizona, Ireland and Israel — with plans to add leading-edge factories in Ohio and Germany.

Intel announced the first phase of its D1X research factory in 2010 and has expanded twice in Hillsboro since then. The third phase, a $3 billion expansion, opened last year.

The next phase of growth, whenever it takes place, will be a major economic boost for the state.

Each prior expansion at D1X brought thousands of construction workers and contractors to Intel’s 450-acre manufacturing campus in Hillsboro during years of construction. Intel said the latest phase added 2,000 factory technicians after it opened.

— Mike Rogoway | mrogoway@oregonian.com | 503-294-7699