Significant assets belonging to Infineon Technologies, including a plant in Morgan Hill, has been sold to Cree Inc. for $428 million on Mar. 6, a move made by Cree to expand its 5G wireless market. The sale will not include Infineon’s Chip Card and Security operations in Morgan Hill. Cree plans to merge the new acquisition with their Wolfspeed radio frequency division.
Infineon, which produces chips, sensors and microcontrollers, is a leader in wireless technology. With the acquisition, Cree hopes to bolster its transition to 5G cellular technology.
“The acquisition strengthens Wolfspeed’s leadership position in RF GaN-on-SiC technologies and provides access to additional markets, customers and packaging expertise,” said Cree CEO Gregg Lowe in a press release. “This is a key element of Cree’s growth strategy and positions Wolfspeed to enable faster 4G networks and the revolutionary transition to 5G.”
Infineon’s products are also used in self-driving cars.
Between Infineon’s operations in Morgan Hill, North Carolina, and Arizona, Infineon has about 260 employees. Worldwide, the Neubiberg, Germany based Infineon Technologies AG employs over 30,000 employees.
As part of the deal, Cree intends to hire the approximately 260 employees in the US locations of Morgan Hill and Chandler, Arizona, as well as in Finland, Sweden, China and South Korea. While the company has built in a transitional period, the former employees of Infineon will become part of Cree Wolfspeed.
“Cree is a strong new owner for this portion of our Radio Frequency business and has an excellent reputation in the industry,” Reinhard Ploss, CEO of Infineon said in a press release. “We are excited about the business rationale and the prospects for the combined businesses. At the same time, we will be able to focus our resources more effectively on Infineon’s strategic growth areas and will retain a strong technology portfolio for the wireless market.”
Included in the sale is the main packaging and test operations facility in Morgan Hill, existing intellectual property, and existing customers. With the acquisition, Cree expects to increase annual revenues by $115 million.
“We are looking forward to combining our strengths with Cree,” said Gerhard Wolf, Vice President, and General Manager, RF Power Products at Infineon. “With our highly skilled and dedicated team, advanced technologies and commitment to business excellence, we look forward to serving our customers seamlessly as the 5G mobile standard ramps up.”
5G technology is the successor the 4G mobile wireless data technology, and it promises faster internet speed. As the type of information that’s conveyed via the internet becomes more complex, 5G technology will be better able to handle the huge amounts of data that are needed. As the technology behind autonomous cars advances, the evolution of 5G technology becomes more important.
Cree is a Durham North Carolina manufacturer of LED lighting and power components.
