I-Pulse, a company supported by BHP, announced that it has entered into an agreement with the U.S. Department of Commerce for a $250 million award intended to accelerate its work on semiconductor and pulsed-power technology. The funding comes from the CHIPS Research and Development Office and is designated to bolster U.S. semiconductor research, increase domestic manufacturing capacity and strengthen supply-chain resilience.
The company, whose founders include mining financier Robert Friedland and Chief Technology Officer Laurent Frescaline, said the award will be used to develop high-performance silicon-carbide semiconductor components. Those components are intended for use in pulsed-power systems, a class of technology I-Pulse says can be applied across several industrial and defense use cases.
Applications cited for the pulsed-power technology include geothermal drilling, mining operations, rock crushing, manufacturing processes and defense-related systems. In geothermal drilling specifically, the company noted that pulse-induced fracturing can lead to faster drilling speeds, longer drill-bit life and the potential for lower operating costs.
Operationally, the program will be led by an Albuquerque-based team operating in proximity to Sandia National Laboratories and the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory. The effort will engage U.S. national laboratories, academic institutions and specialized manufacturers as partners in development and scale-up activities.
The CHIPS Research and Development Office award is framed as part of a policy objective to support domestic semiconductor research and manufacturing, and to improve supply-chain resilience for critical technologies. The announcement highlights the collaboration between private industry, national laboratories and academic partners under the Albuquerque-led program.
While the award and stated goals outline a multi-institutional effort to advance silicon-carbide pulsed-power components, details such as specific timelines, milestone requirements, and commercialization pathways were not included in the announcement.