Launching a new tab, Exxon Mobil (XOM.N) announced Wednesday that it will invest $100 million to modernize its chemical plant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to create a very pure type of isopropyl alcohol, which is used in the electronics industry to process and clean microchips.
The move comes as the chip business is experiencing a boom due to the development of advanced artificial intelligence. Tech firms are producing in-house chips to train AI systems, and companies are building data centers that hold massive troves of specialized chips.
According to Frederik Donkers, vice president of intermediates at Exxon, the chemical plant improvement, which is scheduled to be finished by 2027, would enable Exxon to fulfill the increasing demand from U.S. tech businesses and create additional high-purity isopropyl alcohol.
“It will create production at scale and allow us to support the fabs that are under construction in the U.S.,” he stated.
According to Donkers, production of the ultra-pure isopropyl alcohol will be targeted at American consumers because exporting it over greater distances abroad may compromise its purity level.
Exxon refused to confirm if it had inked new contracts with clients to provide the isopropyl alcohol.
According to SEMI, a trade association for semiconductors, in public comments to the U.S. Department of Commerce in 2021, U.S. corporations have been sourcing very pure isopropyl alcohol from Taiwan and Japan because local producers were unable to meet their needs.
