A Phoenix-based semiconductor company hastily unveiled its plans to construct a manufacturing plant in north Peoria by next year, leaving city leaders scratching their heads.
That’s according to an internal email city management sent to Peoria’s leaders after news broke of Hyperion Technologies’ proposed 600,000-square-foot facility in what it called “the heart of the semiconductor innovation cluster in Peoria.”
That’s within the master-planned Vistancia community, where Amkor Technology Inc. is building its $2 billion semiconductor packing and testing facility near Loop 303 and Lone Mountain Parkway.
Publishing details of its project to support the semiconductor industry on its website, Hyperion boasted the creation of 1,500 direct jobs and 4,500 construction jobs when it breaks ground in the first half of 2025.
The company wants to manufacture high-density interconnect IC substrates, which provide electrical connectivity for semiconductors.
Following the Peoria Independent’s report on the announcement last week, Deputy City Manager Mike Faust apologized to city leaders for learning new “information concerning an economic development project that was prematurely made public” in the media.
“The primary reason this project has not been shared up to this point is that the aspirational efforts of the company had not progressed to the point that warranted a debrief,” Faust added in the email.
Expounding on the intent behind Faust’s apology, Peoria spokesperson Diane Arthur stressed that the company had publicly provided details on its website that hadn’t yet been shared with the city.
“The city was unaware of Hyperion’s website, or the language included on the site until the media coverage was published last week,” she stated in an email.
According to a timeline of the project on Hyperion’s website, the company expects the plant to be substantially completed by the second half of 2026.
While that’s Hyperion’s timeline, it has yet to submit preapplication and site plans to the city.
It planned to have the project’s preliminary site permits and infrastructure plan by the first half of this year.
In an emailed statement, Hyperion said it "is working diligently with itsinvestors, customers, technology partners, state, and local representatives to issue a formal statement outlining our expansion strategy and plans for Hyperion’s first-of-its-kind fabrication facility in the United States.”
The company declined to answer The Arizona Republic’s emailed questions about the state of the project, citing a nondisclosure agreement it has with the city.
On Thursday, Mayor Jason Beck echoed the sentiment, stating in an email that the city’s conversations with Hyperion “have been preliminary and subject to the very standard non-disclosure agreement protocols associated with these types of prospects.”
In response to the news, city staff will address the Hyperion project during a presentation to the council at its Sept. 17 meeting.
Several city leaders didn’t return calls for comment on the project. Those who responded to emails and text messages reiterated the early nature of the project while highlighting the city’s commitment to economic development and job growth.
“Critical advanced semiconductor infrastructure remains part of our overall strategy to increase local employment opportunities and support supply chain security in our country,” Beck stated, noting the city’s proximity to the $65 billion manufacturing plant thatTaiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is building in north Phoenix.
Councilmember Denette Dunn said the project poses a “very big opportunity that needs to be treated as such.”
“These projects take time and care to come to fruition,” she said. “I always listen to my constituents and their differing wants, needs and opinions.”
Hyperion’s proposed project falls within Councilmember Brad Shafer’s Mesquite District. In a community newsletter to constituents last week, he expressed frustration with reading about the project in the news, “especially as it was my first time hearing about it.”
Shafer partially walked that statement back on Wednesday, acknowledging that he and the council receive monthly presentation slides with information about potential economic development projects.
Between January and May, he explained, those slides noted Hyperion’s interest in coming to Peoria. However, he stressed, at the time it was just a concept.
“That’s apples and oranges,” Shafer said of the conceptual stage versus an announcement of breaking ground next year.
“My assumption is the business is really interested and really excited to come to Peoria, and when they announced, they jumped the gun or they prematurely announced the information when it’s still in the planning process,” Shafer said.
According to one of the slides the city shared with The Republic, Hyperion’s project would ramp up production over four to five years. The average salary an employee would make at the plant is $100,000.
It also stated that Hyperion was finalizing a purchase and sale agreement with Vistancia for the property.
In response to a slate of emailed questions, a Vistancia spokesperson said the community doesn’t have any details about the project and referred inquiries to Hyperion and the city.
Faust stated in his email to the council that he would “ensure the proper flow of information” for the project, adding that any detailed briefings to the council would be held in its closed-door meetings called “executive sessions.”
Noting that additional details from the city are forthcoming, Shafer said his questions about the project will focus on whether the property is already zoned for its proposed use.
“Does it fit this type of business coming to the area, and if not, when are public meetings and community meetings, like Planning and Zoning (Commission) taking place?” Shafer asked. “And if it does meet the requirements of the zoning for this area, when is it coming, when is there going to be community outreach, what type of impact will it have on the community and the environment?”
The Peoria City Council’s regular meeting on Sept. 17 begins at 6 p.m. at 8401 W. Monroe St. The meetings are also livestreamed on the city’s YouTube channel, Digital Peoria.
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Shawn Raymundo covers the West Valley cities of Glendale, Peoria and Surprise. Reach him at sraymundo@gannett.com or follow him on X @ShawnzyTsunami.
