Chip component plant to get $300M expansion in Pennsylvania

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — The electronics subsidiary of German company Merck KGaA says it will spend $300 million to expand its specialty gas production facility in eastern Pennsylvania. The announcement Wednesday was attended by Gov. Josh Shapiro. EMD Electronics says it will create the world’s largest integrated specialty gases facility to serve the fast-growing semiconductor industry. State officials hope it will boost Pennsylvania’s appeal to computer chip makers. Shapiro is pledging more than $1 million in state grants for the expansion in Schuylkill County. Company officials say the site houses a research center and synthesizes materials that form core building blocks of transistors, a component of microchips.