Intel to invest £500m, create up to 600 jobs

INTEL, the semiconductor company which already employs 4,300 people in Leixlip, Co Kildare, is shortly to begin recruiting 500 to 600 additional technicians here. This is part of a £500 million investment in Leixlip to introduce the latest range of microprocessor production technology.

Last night the group announced record results for last year, reporting strong growth in sales and profits in the final quarter, which will lead to an 8 to 10 per cent annual bonus for its staff.

Total revenue (sales) last year were $29.4 billion (£22.16 million), up 12 per cent on 1998, while after-tax earnings, excluding acquisition costs, were $8.1 billion, up 29 per cent on the previous year.

Particularly encouraging for Intel was the strength of its performance in the final quarter of last year, when sales of $8.2 billion were a record for any three-month period, up 8 per cent from the same quarter in 1998. After-tax earnings for the quarter, excluding acquisition related costs, were $2.4 billion, up 15 per cent on the same period in 1998 and 25 per cent up on the previous quarter.

As the US group's fourth largest producer of microprocessors worldwide, the Leixlip facility was a major contributor to the latest results. Intel also announced strong initial sales of microprocessors from Intel plants using new 0.18 manufacturing technology, which allows the production of more efficient and faster computer chips.

The new £500 million investment in Leixlip is to prepare the plant for the 0.18 technology. Total investment in the Leixlip plant has reached £1.7 billion and the additional £500 million being spent in the early part of this year will bring the total to £2.2 billion.

The latest strong results will also mean substantial bonuses for the existing staff. They had already received a half-year bonus equivalent to 11 days' pay and are to receive a further 12 days for the second half to bring the total to 23 days. This translates to an annual bonus of around 8 to 10 per cent of gross pay.

"We are proud of our quarterly and annual records in both revenue and earnings," said Mr Craig R. Barrett, president and chief executive officer. "Notably, these results were achieved as we extended our position as the key building block supplier to the worldwide Internet economy."

While seasonal factors are expected to lead to some dip in revenues in the first quarter of this year, Intel expects to be able to maintain its profit margins, and Mr Barrett struck an optimistic note on the outlook for this year.