US chip giant Intel Corp. may announce its plan to build a chip manufacturing plant in China as soon as next Monday, The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

 

Intel plans a press conference for that day in Beijing, with Paul Otellini, its chief executive officer, scheduled to discuss the company's "commitment to China," the report quoted a person close to the situation as saying.

 

Intel reportedly aims to build a 2.5-billion-dollar manufacturing plant in Dalian, a northeastern port city in China.

 

The company already has business operations in China. But a manufacturing plant -- a much more costly type of factory that builds chips on silicon wafers -- could be a major step forward for China's chip-manufacturing capability. Intel now operates such factories in the United States, Ireland and Israel.

 

Many electronics companies have chosen to locate facilities in China, which represents a growing market for computers and other devices, according to the report.

 

(Xinhua News Agency March 22, 2007)