December 1, 2009 – X-Fab Silicon Foundries Group has agreed to transfer ownership of its wafer fab in Plymouth, UK, to Swindon, UK-based Plus Semi. Specific terms of the deal, expected to close within the month, were not disclosed.

X-Fab’s Plymouth site, a 5500 WSPM (200mm-equivalent) facility offering 0.35μm CMOS and low-voltage, plus other CMOS processes from 0.5μm to 1.5μm, had already been designated for sale or closure, as it represented >5% of the company’s total capacity.

Plus Semi, created in May 2009 with the management buyout of MHS Electronics’ Swindon chip foundry activities, gains expansion into analog technology and a new site "that represents an ideal fit, technologically and capacity-wise," according to a statement.

Both sites in Swindon and Plymouth also are former Plessey businesses, now reunited under one proverbial home, noted Plus Semi managing director Michael LeGoff. The "mutually beneficial" handoff also will avoid layoffs; about 150 employees will be at the Plymouth site, in addition to a 20-person design/technology center in Swindon, noted LeGoff. "We have an exciting opportunity to find significant growth in semiconductor design and manufacture in the lucrative analog/mixed-signal semiconductor markets," he stated.