Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin says the sale of IBM's micro-chip manufacturing facility in Essex Junction to manufacturer GlobalFoundries has received federal approval and has been finalized.
Shumlin said Wednesday he's encouraged that California-based GlobalFoundries has committed to continuing to support and invest in the plant and in Vermont.
U.S. Rep. Peter Welch said the announcement provides more certainty and stability for employees at the plant. It has more than 4,000 employees.
The deal ended months of uncertainty about the future of the plant, one of Vermont's largest employers.
Under the deal announced last fall, IBM was paying GlobalFoundries $1.5 billion to take over its semiconductor operations in Vermont and New York. For the next 10 years, GlobalFoundries will become IBM's exclusive provider of certain classes of semiconductors.
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