January, 21, 2002 — Leixlip, Ireland — In an effort to renegotiate construction costs, chip manufacturer, Intel Corp. says it may hold off on further expansion plans to its plant located in Ireland, according to The Irish Times.

The project is expected to cost the company some $2.2 billion and may not be resumed until 2004, according to John McGowan, director of Intel?s Corporate Services Group. However, once completed the plant will create an additional 1000 jobs in that region.

“A major capital investment like this is a liability if it is not fully [utilized] so we have to take ultimate care in the present uncertain economic times to make sure that we are reasonably confident that business conditions in 2004 will warrant its construction,” McGowan told the newspaper.

Additionally, the company says its capital expenditure budget for 2002 will be $5.5 billion, a decrease over the $7.3 billion spent in 2001. The figures were announced last week during the chip giant?s fourth quarter conference call.

“In itself, there is enough headroom for us to complete the project in Ireland if we decide that it is the appropriate place to spend our capital. We would be looking at other options to spend our money, perhaps on re-equipping or changing the tool-set mix in our existing factories,” McGowan notes.