Intel may invest $5.5b to upgrade Dalian factory

Intel Corporation, the world's largest semiconductor chip maker, may invest up to $5.5 billion in its plant in Dalian in Northeast China's Liaoning province, to convert the factory for the production of non-volatile memory chips, a term that refers to chips that retain data after power is turned off.

The site, which began operations in 2010, is expected to start manufacturing the chips by the end of 2016.

Keyvan Esfarjani, vice-president of the California, United States-based multinational, said it will invest up to $3.5 billion in the next three to five years, and that may subsequently increase to $5.5 billion.