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The transaction to make AMD fabless has now been secured with AMD receiving US$700 million from ATIC for a 65.8% share of its Dresden fabs under ‘The Foundry Company,’ as well as taking over US$1.1 billion in debt. ATIC is also initially injecting US$1.4 billion in new capital. The Foundry Company has been valued at US$4.3 billion.

The deal also sees Mubadala purchase 58 million newly-issued AMD shares for approximately US$125 million. AMD’s cash position has been improved by approximately US$825 million.

“With the close of this historic transaction, AMD and its committed partners have conceived two strong industry-leading companies capable of charting future courses that will dramatically improve the technology industry,” said Dirk Meyer, President and CEO of AMD. "Our ‘Asset Smart’ strategy is about more than providing AMD with long term access to world-class, leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing that is foundational to our growth strategy. It is about transforming the industry.

ATIC is the ideal partner to help scale AMD’s forty years of semiconductor expertise, and provide a manufacturing foundation for the entire industry to produce the next generation of semiconductor innovations. We are proud of our vision, the opportunities we are creating around the world, and fortunate to have astute, committed strategic partners in Mubadala and ATIC, and we are delighted to welcome Mubadala to the board of AMD. We are confident that this strategy and partnership will enable AMD to achieve long-term success based on designing and integrating industry-leading computing and graphics technologies that deliver compelling user experiences.”

How long AMD will own a reasonable share in the soon-to-be-renamed foundry operations in Dresden is not known. However, the company noted that further capital funding in the foundry by ATIC would require AMD to also contribute funds, should it want to protect its current ownership level.

With plans to equip and ramp production in Dresden as well starting on the construction of a new 300mm fab in NY State by mid-year, AMD’s share level could potentially be considerably diluted in the next few years.

However, the current plan for ramping the NY State fab is several years away. Although construction will go ahead as planned to ensure state funds of over US$1 billion are secured by the groundbreaking deadline, the new foundry is not currently planning to start production operations for more than a year after the fab is completed. This would limit AMD’s share dilution in the near-term.