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pdfCHIPS for America Guide
September 18, 2023
Funding Opportunity – Commercial Fabrication Facilities
GUIDE: Instruction Guide for Pre-Application Forms and Template
OMB Control Number #0693-0095 Expiration Date 09/30/2023
Introduction
This document provides instructions and guidance for those filling out a pre-application as part of the CHIPS
Incentive Program Notice of Funding Opportunity for Commercial Fabrication Facilities. A pre-application is
optional for all applicants but is recommended for all applicants with the exception of those applying for
leading-edge facilities It may be submitted a minimum of 21 days following the submission of a Statement of
Interest (SOI), assuming the pre-application is open for the relevant facility type (March 31 for leading-edge
facilities, May 1 for current / mature / back-end facilities and September 1 for wafer manufacturing facilities and
for semiconductor materials and manufacturing equipment facilities for which the capital investment equals or
exceeds $300 million).
The pre-application serves as an opportunity for the CHIPS Program Office (CPO) to provide a preliminary
assessment of the likelihood of the project receiving CHIPS Incentives, and to provide meaningful feedback to
applicants before they prepare a full application package.
Please refer to the CHIPS Incentives Program—Commercial Fabrication Facilities Notice of Funding Opportunity
(CHIPS-CFF NOFO) section IV.H. and the FAQs and other guidance materials on the CHIPS website, or email
apply@chips.gov with additional questions.
Throughout the review process, the Department may request additional information and/or revisions regarding
this submission.
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Table of Contents
Introduction ........................................................................................................................................... 1
0. Acknowledgement ............................................................................................................................. 3
1. Cover Page (Web-form questions) ...................................................................................................... 3
2. Project Plan ........................................................................................................................................ 5
2.i. Project(s) Information (Web-form Questions) .................................................................................................. 5
2.ii. Facilities Information (Web-form questions) .................................................................................................... 6
3. Financial Information ......................................................................................................................... 9
3.i. Sources and Uses of Funds (Downloaded Excel Template) ............................................................................... 9
Instructions: ...................................................................................................................................................... 9
Completing the Sources and Uses Excel Template(s) ...................................................................................... 10
3.ii. Sources and Uses of Funds (Web-Form questions) ......................................................................................... 15
4. CHIPS Incentives Request (Web-form questions) .............................................................................. 16
5. Environmental Questionnaire (PDF upload) ...................................................................................... 19
6. Workforce Development Information (Web-form questions)............................................................ 19
7. Attestation and Submission (Web-form questions)........................................................................... 19
Burden Statement ................................................................................................................................................ 20
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0. Acknowledgement
Instructions: In the web portal, you must complete the acknowledgement section of the pre-application before
you can access the rest of the pre-application. By completing this section, you acknowledge that:
“Any communication, data, or other information stored or transmitted on this system may be accessed and used
by federal employees, consultants and contractors in accordance with Section IV.C. of the CHIPS Incentives
Program – Commercial Fabrication Facilities Notice of Funding Opportunity (CHIPS-CFF NOFO). By voluntarily
furnishing information through this system, the applicant consents to such access and use.”
1. Cover Page (Web-form questions)
Instructions: Please populate all applicable and required fields to complete the Pre-Application Cover Page web
form. If fields are pre-populated based on your Statement of Interest submission, they must be verified for
accuracy.
•
Name of Application: Provide a descriptive name for the application / project(s) for which the entity is
requesting CHIPS incentive funds.
Applicant Organization Information
•
Potential Applicant Name: Provide the legal name of the entity applying for CHIPS Incentives. Note, this is
not the name of the individual submitting the pre-application.
•
Corporate Parent Name (If applicable): Provide the legal name of the corporate parent of the entity
applying for CHIPS Incentives. This could be the same name as the Applicant in some cases.
•
Mailing Address: Include the street address, city, state, and zip for US addresses and equivalent
information for foreign addresses, including country/location. If you do not know the 9-digit zip code for
your U.S. location, enter “0000” for the last four digits.
•
Organization Website: Provide a URL address for the applying entity’s website (or corporate parent if
entity does not have a website).
•
Is the applicant a consortium?: Select “Yes” or “No” to indicate whether the applicant is a consortium. A
consortium application involves an umbrella entity and multiple participating entities. For more
information on consortium applications, refer to section III.A.1. of the CHIPS- CFF NOFO.
•
Have you registered for a SAM.gov account? Choose “Yes” or “No” from the dropdown menu to indicate
whether the potential applicant has applied for an account in the federal government’s System for Award
Management (SAM.gov). A prerequisite for any award by the Department is an active registration in the
System for Awards Management (SAM). Potential applicants are strongly encouraged to begin the process
of registering for SAM.gov as early as possible. While this process ordinarily takes between three days and
two weeks, in some circumstances it can take six or more months to complete due to information
verification requirements. CPO is unable to issue a CHIPS Incentive to an entity that lacks an active
SAM.gov registration.
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•
UEI # [Optional]: If the entity has already received a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) via SAM.gov, enter the
number. If the entity has not yet received a UEI, leave this box blank.
Applicant point of contact
Please enter information for the applicant point of contact, who should be an individual authorized to submit an
application on behalf of the entity.
•
Full Name: The full name of the point of contact
•
Title: The official title of the point of contact at the applying entity
•
Email Address: A business email for the point of contact associated with the applicant
•
Phone Number: A business phone number to reach the point of contact
Partnership information
•
Are there other entities (e.g., customers, suppliers, investors, advisors) you anticipate partnering with in
a meaningful way?: Choose “Yes”, “No”, or “Not Determined at this Time” from the dropdown menu to
indicate whether the applicant anticipates partnering with other entities, both for the construction phase
as well as the production phase of the project(s).
o
Please describe any potential partners referred to above: Provide names and brief description of
any potential partners (maximum 1500 characters).
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2. Project Plan
2.i. Project(s) Information (Web-form Questions)
Instructions: In the web portal, update the answers to the following questions that were submitted in the
statement of interest to reflect the most up-to-date details of the projects.
Note, a “project” is a set of capital expenditures for the construction, expansion, or modernization of a single
facility. A project also includes any related workforce development or operating expense costs for the project
facility that the applicant proposes to cover with CHIPS Incentives funds. An application may include more than
one project, covering separate facilities, if the facilities are within a single location and under common
ownership and control.
•
Description of Project(s): Provide a description of the construction, expansion, or modernization activities
for each proposed facility at a single location; resulting products that will be manufactured, along with
information on the scale, size, and capacity of production, and any known timelines (maximum 3000
characters)
•
Product End Market Application: Provide a description of the types of customers and end markets that
will be served by the technology being produced from each proposed facility (maximum 1500 characters).
•
Site location: Provide the City, State, and Zip Code where the proposed facility or facilities will be located.
If you do not know the full 9-digit zip code, enter “0000” for the last four digits.
•
Facility Type(s): Choose from the provided options to indicate the type(s) of facility or facilities proposed
for this project. Select all options that apply. Refer to section I.B.1. in the CHIPS-CFF NOFO for details on
each of the possible Facility Types that are eligible for this NOFO.
o
Leading-Edge Facilities that utilize the most advanced front-end fabrication processes for logic, 3D
NAND Flash, and Dynamic Random-Access Memory (DRAM) semiconductors.
o
Current-Generation Facilities that produce semiconductors that are not leading edge, up to 28 nm
process technologies, and include logic, analog, and mixed-signal devices.
o
Mature-Node Facilities that fabricate generations of: (a) logic and analog chips that are not based
on FinFET, post-FinFET transistor architectures, or any other sub-28 nm transistor architectures;
(b) discrete semiconductor devices such as diodes and transistors; (c) optoelectronics and optical
semiconductors; and (d) sensors.
o
Back-end Production Facilities for the assembly, testing, or packaging of semiconductors that
have completed the front-end fabrication process.
o
Wafer Manufacturing Facilities for the high-volume production of semiconductor wafers,
including wafers made from silicon, silicon carbide, and gallium nitride. These facilities are the
sites of ingot production and wafer slicing, lapping, polishing, cleaning and inspection.
o
Semiconductor Materials and Manufacturing Equipment Facilities (if project capital
expenditures are greater than or equal to $300 million included in this NOFO, otherwise included
in future NOFO) according to the descriptions below
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•
•
Semiconductor Materials Facilities for the manufacture or production, including growth
or extraction, of materials used to manufacture semiconductors, which are the chemicals,
gases, raw and intermediate materials, and other consumables used in semiconductor
manufacturing.
Semiconductor Manufacturing Equipment Facilities for the physical production of
specialized equipment integral to the manufacturing of semiconductors and subsystems
that enable or are incorporated into the manufacturing equipment.
o
Research & Development Facilities (not covered by CHIPS-CFF NOFO)
o
Other: if “other” is selected for Facility Type, provide a description for the facility in the space
provided
Expected Total Project Capital Expenditures (Min, Max)
o
Provide an estimated range of total project capital expenditures (provide minimum and maximum
with the narrowest range possible) for all facilities in the application. Total project capital
expenditures refer to expenses incurred in the construction or improvement of physical assets,
such as the costs of land, building and construction, equipment and installation, physical
improvements, and working capital during the construction phase. Applicants should provide the
estimated range on a best-effort basis that will be needed for all projects in the application.
Figures provided are expected to be preliminary high-level estimates and should be refined with
greater detail in future application steps.
o
Applicants may optionally provide commentary on the expected total capital expenditures for all
proposed projects range, which could include a description of the key cost drivers, an explanation
if the range provided is large, or other supporting details (maximum 500 characters).
Estimated peak monthly unit production capacity: Provide an estimated number of units produced when
the facility reaches peak production. Specify what the units being produced are (e.g., wafers,
components).
o
If the facility will not have any production capacity, leave the box blank and select “Not
Applicable.”
2.ii. Facilities Information (Web-form questions)
Instructions: In the web portal, complete all questions related to the facility or facilities that will be included in
this application. A “facility” used in the context of this application refers to a leading-edge, current-generation,
mature-node commercial fabrication facility, back-end production facility, wafer manufacturing facility or
semiconductor materials and manufacturing equipment facility for which the capital expenditure exceeds $300
million that will be constructed, expanded, or modernized as a result of this project.
•
According to the NOFO, an application may include one or more facilities that are / will be on the same
site. How many facilities will be within the scope of this application? Select from the drop down the
number of facilities proposed for the site.
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o
Additional questions are required to be answered individually for each facility:
o
Provide a name for the Facility: Provide a name for the facility that corresponds to the way the
facility will be referenced in application materials.
o
Provide a brief description for the Facility: Include several pieces of information, including
The facility type (Leading-Edge, Current-Generation, Mature-Node, Back-End Production,
Wafer Manufacturing or Semiconductor Materials and Manufacturing Equipment for
which the capital expenditures are greater than $300 million).
The type of activities that will be completed at the facility (e.g., construction, expansion,
or modernization)
Information on the scale, size, and capacity of production, including peak monthly
capacity and unit of production (e.g., wafers, components).
o
Describe the Technology Type and Geometry for what will be produced in this facility, if
applicable: Provide defining characteristics of the units produced in the facility (e.g., 13nm DRAM
wafers, 40nm Logic wafers, etc.). You may also use this space to describe the back-end production
activities, if applicable to this facility.
o
Facility Type: Choose from the provided options to indicate the type of this facility. Only one type
may be selected.
Leading-Edge Facilities that utilize the most advanced front-end fabrication processes for
logic, 3D NAND Flash, and Dynamic Random-Access Memory (DRAM) semiconductors.
Current-Generation Facilities that produce semiconductors that are not leading edge, up
to 28 nm process technologies, and include logic, analog, and mixed-signal devices.
Mature-Node Facilities that fabricate generations of: (a) logic and analog chips that are
not based on FinFET, post-FinFET transistor architectures, or any other sub-28 nm
transistor architectures; (b) discrete semiconductor devices such as diodes and
transistors; (c) optoelectronics and optical semiconductors; and (d) sensors.
Back-end Production Facilities for the assembly, testing, or packaging of semiconductors
that have completed the front-end fabrication process.
Wafer Manufacturing Facilities for the high-volume production of semiconductor wafers,
including wafers made from silicon, silicon carbide, and gallium nitride. These facilities are
the sites of ingot production and wafer slicing, lapping, polishing, cleaning and inspection.
Semiconductor Materials and Manufacturing Equipment Facilities (if project capital
expenditures are greater than or equal to $300 million included in this NOFO, otherwise
included in future NOFO) according to the descriptions below.
•
Semiconductor Materials Facilities for the manufacture or production, including
growth or extraction, of materials used to manufacture semiconductors, which are
the chemicals, gases, raw and intermediate materials, and other consumables used in
semiconductor manufacturing.
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•
Semiconductor Manufacturing Equipment Facilities for the physical production of
specialized equipment integral to the manufacturing of semiconductors and
subsystems that enable or are incorporated into the manufacturing equipment.
Other: if “other” is selected for Facility Type, provide a description for the facility in the
space provided
o
Technology Type: Choose from the provided options to indicate the type of this facility. Only one
type may be selected. Refer to the NOFO section I.B.1 for more descriptions of the eligible
technology types for each facility.
o
Estimated peak monthly unit production capacity: Provide an estimated number of units
produced when the facility reaches peak production. Specify what the units being produced are
(e.g., wafers, components).
If the facility will not have any production capacity, leave the box blank and select “Not
Applicable.”
•
Note the expected construction start date for this facility: Enter the month and year for the beginning of
this facility’s construction activities as they pertain to new construction, expansion, or modernization. If
construction has already begun, enter a date in the past.
•
Note the expected production start date for this facility: Enter the month and year for when construction
activities will be completed and the facility will begin production.
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3. Financial Information
3.i. Sources and Uses of Funds (Downloaded Excel Template)
These instructions refer to the downloadable Sources & Uses Excel Template that can be found in the preapplication portal and at this link: https://www.nist.gov/document/chips-nofo-commercial-fabrication-facilitiespre-application-sources-and-uses-template.
Instructions:
•
Upload the completed sources and uses Excel template to the appropriate location within the Financial
Information section of the pre-application portal.
•
Applicants should complete this Excel template on a best-efforts basis. Figures provided in this Excel
template are expected to be estimates and are permissible to be rough approximations for high-level cost
categories. While estimated figures are allowable, applicants who provide greater detail in the preapplication phase will maximize the value of CPO pre-application feedback which can potentially
accelerate the application and award processes.
•
Please also complete the four required free response questions provided in the form, located at the
bottom of the “S&U – Summation across projects” sheet.
•
Shared costs related to infrastructure improvements, workforce development, and other areas should be
allocated across projects, if applicable. Likewise, capital sources that are not strictly attached to a project
(e.g., equity, bonds, government support) should be allocated across projects, if applicable.
•
Please also refer to the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) Section IV.H.3 – Financial Information:
Sources and Uses of Funds for an overview of the requirements for this portion of the application.
Using the Sources and Uses Excel template
•
The Sources and Uses Excel document that the applicant completes and uploads to the pre- application
portal should contain at least 1 sheet for “S&U Project” and only 1 tab for “S&U – Summation across
Projects”
•
There should be a unique “S&U - Project” sheet for each facility reported in the Project Plan section. The
total number of sheets pertaining to “S&U - Project” should directly correspond with the total number of
projects proposed in the application. If there is only one project in this application, delete the “S&U –
Project 2” sheet.
•
For each “S&U - Project” sheet there are upfront sections to provide the Facility Name and Facility
Description. The name and description should correspond with the facility name and description
submitted in other portions of the application.
•
The “S&U – Summation across Projects” sheet is used to aggregate the entries across all the projects
•
The applicant should first complete 1) all S&U - Project sheets applicable to their application and
subsequently complete 2) the S&U – Summation across projects sheet and questions
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Completing the Sources and Uses Excel Template(s)
For each project sheet, provide a detailed list of the estimated costs for the project and the types and amounts
of funding that will be used to cover those costs by completing Schedules A, B, and C. Then, complete the
summation tab to aggregate sources and uses for all projects.
Schedule A: The Uses Schedule should cover estimates for both hard/physical asset costs (e.g., buildings or
equipment) and soft/implementation costs (e.g., legal or consultant services, fees, contingency etc.) in the cost
estimate. Estimates can be made for high-level cost categories and do not require granular cost breakdowns;
however, examples are provided below for what may be permissible to consider when estimating for a cost
category. For each line item, enter the cost amount in USD and estimate the percentage of the amount that will
be eligible for the Investment Tax Credit (ITC). Also, please refer to additional notes in this section for a list of
costs that should be excluded from this schedule.
This section should include:
1. Capital Investment costs required to complete construction of the facility and initiate operations. This can
include the following categories:
•
Land, which may include, but is not limited to, costs associated with land acquisition, site restoration, land
improvements, cost of appraisal, right-of-way acquisitions, relocation expenses and payments, demolition
and removal costs, or other costs associated with land.
•
Construction, which may include, but is not limited to, labor, material, and other costs associated with
construction of the facility. Any costs to build the clean room should be included within construction.
•
Equipment, which may include, but is not limited to, costs related to initial equipment purchases or
modernization costs, installation expenses, spare parts, and other equipment-related costs.
•
Infrastructure Improvements, which may include, but is not limited to, costs to construct or improve
utility plants required for the facility; costs associated with gaining access to infrastructure such as roads,
water, power etc.; wastewater treatment plants; fencing; and other infrastructure.
•
Administrative expenses directly attributable to the facility construction, which may include, but is not
limited to legal fees, engineering fees, licensing and permitting fees, architecture fees, bond fees, safety
and environmental protection costs, costs associated with receiving CHIPS funding, inspection fees,
insurance costs, capitalized interest, and other related expenses
•
Other Capital Investment, which may include other costs not mentioned above and should be detailed in
the schedule with appropriate breakdown of costs
Potential applicants should enter “0” for any costs that are not applicable to their project(s).
2. Operating losses and other cash outflows until project breaks even on a cash flow basis: (i.e., cashflows
turn positive and the facility can sustain itself without any additional funding from investors). Please
complete Schedule C: “Schedule for Operating Cash Flows until Project breaks even on a Cash Flow basis” and
provide a breakdown of operating revenues and operating costs that have been estimated in this line item.
Potential applicants should enter “0” for any line items that are not applicable to their project(s).
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3. Workforce development costs: Provide a schedule showing estimated spending by the applicant on
workforce development activities to support the proposed project. Some examples may include, but are not
limited to equipment costs, construction of a training center, costs for training and education, wrap-around
support costs, and childcare costs. Please provide other costs in the space provided that are expected to be a
part of the workforce development plan submitted with the pre-application.
Potential applicants should enter “0” for any line items that are not applicable to their project(s).
4. Other Uses of Funds: Provide any uses of funds during the construction phase of the project and until cash
flows turn positive, beyond the capital investments, operating losses and other cash outflows, and workforce
development costs.
5. Total Project Costs: Ensure the Total Project Costs for the project is equal to the sum of line items 1 – 4 in the
Use of Funds section. Total Project Funding in Schedule B must match the Total Project Costs in Schedule A.
Additional notes for Schedule A:
A. Investment Tax Credit Eligible Costs: Please indicate the estimated percentage of costs that will be
eligible for the Investment Tax Credit for each line item in this schedule. Rough approximations or highlevel estimates are acceptable.
B. Excluded costs: The following costs are excluded from the Sources & Uses Excel template. These costs will
not be evaluated during determination of CHIPS funding awarded to a project. This list is not exhaustive,
and CPO reserves the right to determine on a case-by-case basis other costs that are excluded and
communicate this with applicants. The excluded costs include:
o
Fees and commissions charged to applicant, including finder’s fees, for obtaining Federal or
o
other funds
o
Parent corporation or affiliated entity expenses and assessments that are not related to the
project
o
Goodwill, franchise, trade, or brand name costs
o
Dividends and profit sharing, including, but not limited to, stock repurchases
o
Costs that are excessive or are not directly required to carry out the project, as determined by CPO
o
Applicant-paid cost of issuing a CHIPS Loan or Loan Guarantee
Schedule B: The Funding Source Schedule should include estimates for all sources of funding that will contribute
to the project. If there are multiple projects, allocate sources of funds appropriately.
1. Equity Funding: Include Sponsor Equity (i.e., applicant, intermediate entity, and/or corporate parent equity),
Third-Party Equity, and any other forms of equity that is expected to be injected into the project. Please
provide a description of the other forms of equity, if entered.
2. Debt Funding: Include all debt raised for the project.
o
This should include intercompany loans that may have been down streamed by the Corporate
Parent to the applicant legal entity, intermediate entity, or third-party debt directly raised by the
applicant legal entity.
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o
Please also provide amounts and details for the unguaranteed portion of the third-party loans
that will be applied for CHIPS Guarantees (e.g., if a third-party loan will be requested to have 80%
of the loan guaranteed by the CHIPS program, then provide the amount of the remaining 20% of
the loan that will not be guaranteed).
o
Provide a description any other forms of debt that are entered.
o
Do not include debt from CHIPS loans or portions of loans guaranteed by CHIPS program in this
section.
3. Government Support: Include any funding received (or expected to be received) by the applicant for the
project(s) from Federal, State, and Local governing bodies in the form of direct funding (e.g., grants), debt
(e.g., loans, loan guarantees), tax credits, or other forms of incentives (e.g., land awards, subsidized utilities).
Incentive amounts are expected to be directionally accurate given industry-normal risks and returns for a
project of this nature.
o
For CHIPS Direct Funding, indicate the amount of direct funding that the entity is requesting.
o
For CHIPS Loans, indicate the total amount of CHIPS loans the entity is requesting.
o
For the line item “Third-party Loans Guaranteed by CHIPS Program,” please only include the
o
portion of third-party debt that the entity is requesting to be guaranteed by the CHIPS Program.
o
The portion of debt in this tranche not guaranteed by the CHIPS Program must be included in
o
the “Debt Funding” section of this schedule.
o
For the Investment Tax Credit, indicate the expected value of the Investment Tax Credit benefit
that will act as an additional source of funds for the project. The estimation should take into
consideration the initial Investment Tax Credit received on the asset net of the loss of
depreciation on the portion of assets receiving the credit (i.e., the portion of the asset earning the
Investment Tax Credit cannot be depreciated for future tax benefits).
o
For State and Local Grants, Loans, and Tax Credits, combine the amounts of incentives expected to
be received from state governments and local governments for which the facility will be located,
respectively. If the approximate amounts of support to be received is known, but the type of
incentive is not yet determined (e.g., grant vs. tax credit), then enter the approximate total
amount in the “Other State and Local Government Incentives” category.
4. Any other sources of funding should also be noted and sized. This may include, but is not limited to,
equipment financing, sale / leaseback or other real estate financing, and customer funding (e.g., customer
pre-payments).
5. Total Project Funding: Ensure the Total Project Costs for the project is equal to the sum of line items 1 – 4 in
the Sources of Funds section. Total Project Funding in Schedule B must match the Total Project Costs in
Schedule A.
Schedule C: The Schedule for Operating Cash Flows until Project breaks even on a Cash Flow basis should
provide a detailed breakdown of estimated revenues, operating expenses, other operating income, other cash
flow items and financing costs & taxes until project breaks even on a cash flow basis (i.e., cash flows turn
positive). All items in this schedule should pertain to cash inflows and outflows and may not include non-cash
items. If non-cash items such as depreciation are included in certain line items, they should be adjusted back in
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another line item, to ensure that the schedule only contains cash related items.
Total sales until project breaks even on a cash flow basis: Include only net sales from normal business
operations.
1. Total operating expenses until project breaks even on a cash flow basis: Include estimates for all cash
outflows associated with operating the facility. These may include:
•
Direct costs of production, which may include, but are not limited to, costs for materials, consumables
and chemicals, labor, and utilities. Depreciation expenses associated with direct costs of production may
be included in the value provided, and then adjusted in the Other Cash Flow items.
•
Selling, General, and Administrative costs, which may include, but are not limited to, costs for
administration, marketing, human resourcing functions, carrying costs, and insurance
•
Research and Development related costs for manufacturing activities
•
Facility Maintenance, which may include, but is not limited to facility cleaning and repairs
2. Other operating income until project breaks even on a cash flow basis: Input and describe any other forms
of operating income generated by the project beyond net sales.
3. Other cash flow items until project breaks even on a cash flow basis: Examples of these cash flows may
include:
•
Expenses associated with replacing equipment, expenses associated with performing upgrades to
equipment, or modifying equipment, including the expenses to service or install equipment as part of the
above activities.
•
Net Working Capital: net estimated liquid reserves required to meet current, short-term obligations.
•
Depreciation: Include a value for depreciation of equipment that may have been included in the direct
costs of production, so that the impact of depreciation is netted out to zero between Direct Costs of
Production and Depreciation. Depreciation is not a cash outflow and will be added back in the calculation
of total operating losses and other cash outflows.
4. Total financing costs and taxes until project breaks even on a cash flow basis: estimate the interest paid to
service debt and any corporate taxes that will be paid until project breaks even on a cash flow basis, as well as
and any other taxes. These costs should include:
•
Interest Paid to Service Debt: Include an estimation based on how much debt will be assumed by the
project, the expected interest rate, and amortization schedule.
•
Payments to Third-Party Partners: May include, but is not limited to operating fees, licensing fees, and
price discounts.
•
Other Financing Costs: Provide a description of any other financing costs that are expected to be incurred.
•
Corporate Taxes: Expected corporate taxes which should include any tax obligations related to the Direct
Funding and Grants that the applicant expect to receive.
•
Other Taxes: Provide a description of any other taxes that are expected to be incurred.
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S&U – Summation across projects sheet
The S&U – Summation across projects sheet should be an aggregation of the sources and uses across all of the
projects within the application.
•
If there is one project in the application, then the S&U – Project sheet should exactly match the S&U –
Summation across projects sheet.
•
If there are multiple projects, then for each cell in the S&U – Summation across projects sheet, add
together the corresponding cells for each project sheet. This is to be performed in the exact same manner
for each schedule.
•
If optional rows were added in the project sheets, be sure to include the names and summed amounts of
those line items in the S&U – Summation across projects sheet.
As part of this sheet, please also provide an answer in the Free Response Questions (if applicable). For
reference, sample answers to the first four free response questions are provided below:
Question 1: Provide an explanation on how the equity injected into the project legal entity (by the applicant, its
corporate parent or third-party partners) is funded. If debt is raised on the corporate parent’s or third-party
partner's balance sheet, outside of the project legal entity structure, and then down streamed as equity, please
provide details on the amount of debt attributable to this project.
Sample answer: The equity injected into the project legal entity is funded from available cash from the
Corporate Parent’s corporate balance sheet, which is driven by a mix of equity raised on the Corporate
Parent’s books, retained earnings and debt raised on Corporate Parent’s books. While we do not allocate
debt to the project legal entities in business as usual, our typical mix of Debt to Equity on our corporate
balance sheet is 0.3x, indicating that for every $1 of funding, $0.3 of it is funded by debt and the
remaining is funded through equity (equity issuances and / or retained earnings).
Question 2: If known, provide information on the key features and terms & conditions related to the debt
funding raised by the applicant (e.g., Tenor, Fixed vs. Floating rate, Interest rate, Amortization features, prepayment optionality).
Sample answer: For this project, 2 types of debt are expected to be raised. 1) an amortizing CHIPS loan
for $300 Million with a twelve-year tenor, a 5-year interest deferral period, and a floating interest rate of
+100 bps over LIBOR. 2) $500 Million of 30-year corporate bonds with a 4% fixed coupon rate.
Question 3: Explain how you estimated the value of the benefit from the Investment Tax Credit.
Sample answer: All facilities constructed, and equipment installed qualifying for the ITC will be placed no
later than June 1, 2025. The total amount of the facility construction will be $200 million, and the total
amount of new equipment installed will be $800 million, both of which are fully eligible for the
Investment Tax Credit. Of the $1 billion in relevant construction and equipment manufacturing-related
expenses, 25% will be claimed through the ITC, resulting in an estimated $250 million credit. This in turn
will reduce the amount of depreciation we can claim on these assets by $250 million, thereby reducing
our tax benefit by $52.5 million (21% of $250 million). To that end, the net benefit that we received from
the ITC is $197.5 million.
Question 4: Are there any other state or local incentives that provide funding in a form that is not a direct grant
or loan, such as reduced utilities costs, reduced taxes, etc.? If yes, please describe and estimate incentive
amount(s) through the life of the project, and through the time period until cash flows turn positive.
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Sample answer: The state in which the project will be constructed has authorized $100 million in
discounted Industrial Development bonds over a 10-year duration, leading to a cost savings of $10
million through the life of the bond. The municipality in which the project will be constructed has pledged
30% reduction in costs for power (an estimated $50 million value through the 25-year life of the project)
and has waived all local income taxes for the first 5 years of production (an estimated $25 million savings
to the project in this timeframe). The incremental value of state and local benefits not captured in
Schedule B total up to $85 million.
3.ii. Sources and Uses of Funds (Web-Form questions)
Instructions: In the CHIPS web portal, fill in the following information from a completed Sources and Uses Excel
Template. Please ensure values for sources and uses match numbers submitted in the uploaded document as
well as the CHIPS Incentives request form.
•
For each box in the form, enter in the exact same value from the correspondingly named cell in the S&U –
Summation across projects sheet in the uploaded Excel template.
•
Please enter the total Project Uses Schedule (from the excel template) into the fields on Financial
Information Page 2
•
Please enter the total Project Sources Schedule (from the excel template) into the fields on Financial
Information Page 3 and Page 4
•
For State and Local Government Incentives, sum together the expected grants, loans, tax credits, and
other incentives from those sources and enter as a single value in the form.
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4. CHIPS Incentives Request (Web-form questions)
Instructions: In the pre-application web portal, provide a summary of the funding request and available credit
ratings in the CHIPS Incentives Request Web Form. Applicants should complete the Incentives Request Form on
a best-efforts basis. Figures provided by the applicant are expected to be estimates and are permissible to be
rough approximations for high-level cost categories. While estimated figures are allowed, applicants who
provide greater detail in the pre-application phase will maximize the value of CPO pre-application feedback,
which can potentially accelerate the application and award processes. Please refer to the Notice of Funding
Opportunity (NOFO) Section IV.H.3 – Financial Information: CHIPS Incentives Request for an overview of the
requirements for this portion of the application.
**Please note that the final decision on the CHIPS financing assistance and key terms will be made by the
Department of Commerce. This information is to help the Department understand the Applicant's estimate of
CHIPS financing assistance.
A. CHIPS Incentives Request Summary – In the web portal, indicate whether you are requesting for Direct
Funding, CHIPS Loan, and / or a CHIPS Loan Guarantee. For any of those that you select “Yes” you will see an
additional corresponding page to provide a summary of the amount of funding requested. Please ensure
information provided in this form matches the corresponding CHIPS Direct Funding, CHIPS Loans, and
Guaranteed portion of Third-party Loans Guaranteed by CHIPS Program sections in the “S&U – Summation
across projects sheet” sheet in the Sources and Uses of Funds Excel template and web form.
Guidelines for CHIPS Loans and Loan Guarantees - Please see NOFO Section I.B.8 for further details.
•
Interest Rate: The interest rate on a CHIPS Loan will generally be based on the cost of funds to the
Department of the Treasury for obligations of comparable maturity plus a portion of the spread to the
market rate for commercial loans or debt of similar risk, tenor, and terms.
•
Tenor: Loans will generally be extended for a term that covers the construction period plus up to 15 years.
The maximum tenor is 25 years.
•
Structure: Loans will be available on both a corporate and project finance basis, depending on the legal
structure and nature of the project.
•
Amortization: Corporate finance loans will generally be bullet loans repayable at maturity. Project finance
loans will generally be non-amortizing during the construction period of a project and then amortizing
until maturity.
•
Prepayment: CHIPS Loans may be prepaid at the election of the borrower, subject to prepayment periods,
waiting periods, and other terms to be agreed upon.
The specific terms of a CHIPS Loan Guarantee will be subject to negotiation with the applicant and the third-party
lender(s). While the extent of the loan guarantee will vary based on the financing requirements and risk
characteristics of a transaction, loan guarantees are not expected to cover more than 80% of any third-party debt
obligation. CHIPS Loan Guarantees will be subject to comparable underwriting and diligence standards as CHIPS
Loans.
A1. CHIPS Direct Funding Request: Indicate whether direct funding (e.g., grant, Other Transaction
Authority) will be requested. If requested, enter the expected amount to be requested in dollars.
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A2. CHIPS Loans Request: Indicate whether CHIPS loans will be requested. If the application includes a
request for a loan
o
Provide the dollar amount requested
o
Provide the requested tenor of the loan (not to exceed 25 years)
o
Indicate whether the financing structure of the loan will be “Corporate Finance” or “Project
Finance.” Corporate Finance implies debt is incurred at the parent of development company level,
with debt secured at the development company level. Project Finance implies that debt is secured
at the project company level to finance the project
o
Optionally, provide other requested terms for the requested CHIPS loan (e.g., details on
amortization schedule, deferred interest option, pre-payment, seniority, collateralization, fixed vs
floating interest rate type). To the extent that requested terms differ from the baseline terms in
Section I.B.8 of the NOFO, the summary should include a justification.
A3. CHIPS Loan Guarantee Request: Indicate whether a CHIPS loan guarantee will be requested. If the
application includes a request for a loan guarantee
o
For a loan requested to be guaranteed:
Provide the total size of the loan in dollars
Provide the amount of the loan requested to be guaranteed in dollars (not to exceed 80%
of the total size of the loan)
Provide the requested tenor of the loan guarantee (not to exceed 25 years)
If known, provide the third-party lender (include all lenders if the loan is syndicated)
o
Verify that the calculated loan guarantee summary fields correctly reflect the loan guarantee
information entered
o
Optionally, provide other known or requested terms for the loan requested to be guaranteed
(e.g., details on amortization schedule, deferred interest option, pre-payment, seniority,
collateralization, fixed vs floating interest rate type). To the extent that requested terms differ
from the baseline terms in Section I.B.8 of the NOFO, the summary should include a justification.
B. Credit Rating Summary – Provide the most recent credit ratings applicable to the borrowing entity and its
corporate parent / sponsor, if available. If credit ratings are not available, please enter N/A for the name of
the agency, N/A for the rating, and select today’s date.
•
Borrowing entity for Project: enter details such as entity name, SAM.gov unique enterprise identifier (if
available), mailing address, and organization website. Some fields may be auto populated from other
sections and the applicant should verify the information is correct.
•
Corporate Parent / Sponsoring Entity: If applicable, provide details for the corporate parent or sponsoring
entity that houses the entity that will borrow from the CHIPS program.
•
Credit Rating of Borrowing Entity: If the borrowing entity has received a long-term corporate credit rating
from a credit rating agency, indicate the name of the agency, the rating, and the date the rating was
released. Provide the most recent rating for any agency which has rated the entity’s corporate
creditworthiness.
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CHIPS for America Guide
•
Credit Rating of Corporate Parent / Sponsoring Entity: If the corporate parent / sponsoring entity has
received a long-term corporate credit rating from a credit rating agency, indicate the name of the agency,
the rating, and the date the rating was released. Provide the most recent rating for any agency which has
rated the entity’s corporate creditworthiness.
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5. Environmental Questionnaire (PDF upload)
Upload the Environmental Questionnaire that can be found on the CHIPS program website
(https://www.nist.gov/document/chips-nofo-commercial-fabrication-facilities-pre-application-environmentalquestionnaire)
6. Workforce Development Information (Web-form questions)
Instructions: In the web portal complete all required questions related to workforce development.
•
•
Provide an estimate of the number of jobs that will be created during the construction phase of the
project(s). Do not include any jobs that will be performed outside of the United States.
o
Direct jobs on the construction site(s): Enter an estimate for the number of jobs that will be
directly involved in the construction activities for the construction, expansion, or modernization of
a facility. Examples include laborers and foremen for construction activities.
o
Indirect jobs: Enter an estimate for the number of jobs that will be indirectly involved in the
construction activities for the construction, expansion, or modernization of a facility. Examples
include contracted equipment suppliers and technicians, architects and engineers consulted.
o
Provide an explanation of your job creation estimates above. Provide any assumptions, sources,
or other explanations for the estimates included for direct or indirect jobs created.
Provide an estimate of the number of jobs that will be created during the production phase of the
project(s). Do not include any jobs that will be performed outside of the United States.
o
Direct jobs in production: Enter an estimate for the number of jobs that will be directly involved
in the operation of the facility or facilities. This includes all employees of the entity that will be
onsite for activities relating to manufacturing, overhead, research & development, and
administration.
o
Indirect jobs: Enter an estimate for the number of jobs that will be created in the broader
ecosystem as a result of operating the facility or facilities. Examples include incremental needs for
materials suppliers (e.g., silicon, chemicals, consumables), utilities suppliers, contractors for
equipment needs (e.g., cleaning and repair), product transport, etc.
o
Provide an explanation of your job creation estimates above. Provide any assumptions, sources,
or other explanations for the estimates included for direct or indirect jobs created.
7. Attestation and Submission (Web-form questions)
In the web portal, you must complete the attestation and certifications before you can submit the preapplication. By completing this section and submitting the application you acknowledge the following statements.
The CHIPS Program Office (CPO) recognizes the importance of protecting confidential business information and will
follow all applicable laws to protect such information, including, for example, the CHIPS Act, the Trade Secrets Act, and
the Freedom of Information Act. Please refer to Section IV.C. of the CHIPS Incentives Program – Commercial
Fabrication Facilities Notice of Funding Opportunity (CHIPS-CFF NOFO) for a further discussion of these laws.
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Submission Certifications:
☐ The individual submitting the Pre-Application certifies on behalf of the applicant entity that the applicant
information and data submitted and the representations made in the Pre-Application are true, complete and
accurate, to the best of the applicant’s knowledge and belief after due inquiry.
☐ The individual submitting the Pre-Application certifies on behalf of the applicant that the applicant
understands that CPO and the Department of Commerce will rely on the accuracy and completeness of the
application information and data submitted and the representations made in the Pre-Application and that any
false, fictitious or fraudulent statement or representation made in the Pre-Application may be the basis for
rejection of the Pre-Application or subject the applicant to criminal, civil, or administrative penalties. (18 U.S.
Code, Section 1001.)
☐ The individual submitting the Pre-Application certifies on behalf of the applicant that the applicant
understands that any applicant information and data contained in the Pre-Application may be accessed and
used by federal employees, consultants and contractors in accordance with CHIPS-CFF NOFO, Section IV.C.
(Confidential Information).
☐ The individual submitting the Pre-Application certifies that they possess the full legal power and authority to
submit the Pre-Application and make the preceding certifications on behalf of the applicant.
Public Communications:
☐ The individual submitting the Pre-Application agrees that neither the applicant entity nor any of its affiliates
may issue any press release or otherwise publicly disclose the status of the Pre-Application or the contents of
any communications with CPO or the Department of Commerce without CPO’s prior written consent.
☐ The individual submitting the Pre-Application certifies that they possess the full legal power and authority to
bind the applicant.
Burden Statement
A Federal agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, nor shall a person be
subject to a penalty for failure to comply with an information collection subject to the requirements of the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 unless the information collection has a currently valid OMB Control Number.
The approved OMB Control Number for this information collection is 0693-0095. Without this approval, we could
not conduct this information collection. Public reporting for this information collection is estimated to be
approximately 60 hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data
sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the information collection. All
responses to this information collection are voluntary to obtain benefits. Send comments regarding this burden
estimate or any other aspect of this information collection, including suggestions for reducing this burden to the
National Institute of Technology at Cierra Bean, Business Operations Specialist, askchips@chips.gov.
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| File Type | application/pdf |
| File Title | Pre-App Instruction Guide_Amendment |
| Author | cierra.bean@chips.gov |
| File Modified | 2023-09-21 |
| File Created | 2023-09-18 |