Commerce signs up to $389 million in energy-semiconductor letters of intent

The Commerce Department said on Oct. 22 that it had signed four letters of intent for up to $389 million in CHIPS Act research and development awards focused on energy semiconductors and materials.

Helion has a proposed ceiling of $175 million for high-voltage power semiconductors and energy modules for pulsed-power applications in fusion. Commonwealth Fusion Systems has a proposed ceiling of $85 million for radio-frequency heating, power electronics, diagnostics and radiation-hardened electronics.

Vertical Semiconductor is listed for up to $73 million to advance vertical gallium-nitride power devices and demonstrate a 2.5-megawatt data-center rack. Sibelco is listed for up to $56 million for purification and finishing methods for ultra-high-purity quartz.

The department said it would receive a minority, non-controlling and non-voting equity stake in each company as a condition of making the final awards. That term is part of the proposed arrangement, not evidence that the funds have already been disbursed.

The stated aims connect energy conversion, grid modernization and data-center loads with domestic semiconductor research. The release describes expected applications; it does not report completed research or a production outcome from the four projects.

The next material step is conversion of the letters into final award agreements. The department’s figures are “up to” amounts, so final terms and disbursements may differ from the announced ceilings.

The four project descriptions address different parts of the electricity-to-compute chain. Helion’s proposed work concerns high-voltage components and modules for pulsed-power fusion systems; Commonwealth Fusion Systems’ work includes heating and diagnostic electronics; Vertical Semiconductor’s focus is compact power delivery; Sibelco’s is the high-purity quartz used in semiconductor processing hardware. The announcement groups these projects under energy supply-chain research rather than conventional chip-fab construction grants.

The distinction between a letter of intent and a final award is central to the $389 million headline. Commerce says final awards will require each company to conduct the named research, and it describes an equity stake as a condition of those awards. The release does not give the stake percentage, valuation method for each firm, payment schedule or final legal agreements.

For the grid, power electronics manage conversion and delivery of electricity; for data centers they are part of the equipment that supplies increasingly dense computing loads. Commerce presents domestic research as a way to reduce foreign supply reliance, but its announcement does not quantify current imports, future capacity or the expected effect on electricity costs.

The recipients represent different links in that chain rather than four identical projects. Helion’s proposed research covers high-voltage devices and modules for pulsed-power work associated with fusion magnets; CFS’s scope includes radio-frequency plasma heating, power electronics, diagnostics and radiation-hardened electronics. Vertical Semiconductor’s work concerns vertical GaN devices for compact power delivery, while Sibelco’s program targets purification and finishing of ultra-high-purity quartz. The NIST release describes intended research areas and award ceilings, not completed technical milestones or guaranteed commercial products.