SINGAPORE: Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said that by allowing the controlled entry of foreign workers, Singapore has attracted one of the largest investments in the country and created more jobs for Singaporeans.
Mr Lee said this during a speech at the opening of chipmakers Intel and Micron's joint venture manufacturing plant IM Flash Singapore Nand Flash Wafer Fab on Thursday.
The 300 millimetre NAND facility is a first in Singapore and is one of the largest investments at US$3 billion.
The
plant manufactures NAND flash memory chips using the 25 nanometre
process technology that are used in smartphones and tablets.
Mr Lee said it is expected to bring significant spinoffs to supporting industries.
Currently,
IM Flash Singapore employs 1,200 workers of which six in 10 are
Singaporeans and permanent residents (PRs), while four in 10 are
foreigners
"Without the foreign workers, we would not have
attracted this US$3 billion investment, and Intel and Micron would have
built its wafer fab elsewhere," PM Lee said.
"But by allowing in
a controlled number of foreign workers, far from disadvantaging
Singaporean workers, we have created more good jobs for Singaporeans,"
he continued.
"For every one foreign worker, we have created 1.5 local jobs in this project," PM Lee said.
So
far, Singaporeans and PRs take up about two-thirds of the managerial
and professional positions, while two-thirds of technician and
manufacturing jobs are done by the foreigners.
The opening of the facility comes as demand for consumer electronics is increasing amid better economic conditions globally.
The construction of the facility was put on hold in 2008 as consumer sentiment collapsed in the wake of the financial crisis.
It now aims to be at full production levels later in 2011.
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Baglee, vice president and director of NAND manufacturing and
operations at Intel said, "The IM Flash joint venture has been able to
create tremendous momentum and industry leading manufacturing
capabilities. We look forward to adding IM Flash Singapore to our global
manufacturing network."
- CNA/fa