Construction would start in Richardson, a few miles (kilometers) north of the company's Dallas headquarters, by the end of 2005, the company said in a statement.

It would be the second Texas Instruments factory making semiconductors on 300-millimeter (12-inch diameter) silicon wafers, requiring a "multi-year" investment of three billion dollars, the group said.

The facility is expected to employ up to 1,000 people.

SPACE.WIRE