Durham, NC – Wolfspeed, a Durham-based semiconductor supplier, announced earlier this week that it has received $698.6 million in cash tax refunds from the Advanced Manufacturing Investment Credit (AMIC) under Section 48D of the Internal Revenue Code from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) under a provision in the 2022 CHIPS Act.
The news comes just over two months after the company announced that it had emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection following the completion of its financial restructuring process.
The company announced in June that it planned to file for Chapter 11.
TipRanks, a website that provides stock analysis and breaking news in the financial world, reported in March that the silicon carbide chipmaker had roughly $6.5 billion in debt, while its cash and cash equivalents balance stood at $1.3 billion.
In September, company officials said that through the restructuring process, the company had reduced its total debt by approximately 70%, with maturities extended to 2030. They said the company lowered its annual cash interest expense by roughly 60% and would be able to continue supplying customers with leading silicon carbide solutions.
Wolfspeed manufactures wide-bandgap semiconductors focused on silicon carbide and gallium nitride materials, including microchips. General Motors and Mercedes-Benz are among its customers.
In fiscal year 2025, it also received $186.5 million in cash tax refunds related to its fiscal 2023 and fiscal 2024 federal tax filings.
This latest refund has boosted Wolfspeed’s cash balance to approximately $1.5 billion, providing the company with greater financial flexibility as it advances the ramp of its 200mm silicon carbide manufacturing footprint, according to a press release. The company stated that it continues to focus on diversifying its power device revenue into key growing segments, including AI data centers, aerospace and defense, and industrial and energy, while also supporting the electric vehicle (EV) market.
“This substantial cash infusion further strengthens our liquidity position at a critical phase in Wolfspeed’s strategic evolution,” Wolfspeed CFO Gregor Van Issum said in the release. “It provides us with the financial agility to support long-term growth, manage our capital structure responsibly, and continue driving innovation across the silicon carbide value chain for our customers.”
The company plans to allocate $192.2 million of the refund toward retiring approximately $175 million of its outstanding debt, with the remaining funds to be used for general corporate purposes.
Wolfspeed also announced in 2023 that a group led by Apollo Global, which led restructuring negotiations, would provide $1.25 billion in debt financing with the option to go as high as $2 billion to support the company’s expansion plans in New York and Siler City, North Carolina.
In October 2024, the Biden-Harris administration announced that it had signed the initial agreement for up to $750 million in federal funding to support the construction of a new $5 billion silicon carbide wafer manufacturing facility in Siler City under the CHIPS and Science Act. The company said it planned to hire 1,800 workers at the site.
But, the company has not received any of the funding because it was contingent on Wolfspeed refinancing its convertible notes maturing in 2026, 2028, and 2029.
On June 9, the company announced that it would lay off 73 workers in August from its new materials factory in Siler City.
Wolfspeed had about 5,000 workers worldwide last summer, with the majority in the Research Triangle area.
However, the company began to show troubling signs in November, when it announced that it was reducing its workforce by 20%. Most of the layoffs came from its Durham location. With more layoffs, buyouts, and attrition, that figure now stands closer to 25%.
Wolfspeed also fabricates chips at its plant in the Mohawk Valley area in New York.
Theresa Opeka is the Executive Branch reporter for the Carolina Journal.