Intel Corp. and Tower Semiconductor have mutually agreed to terminate Intel’s previously disclosed agreement to acquire Tower due to the inability to receive regulatory approvals required under the merger agreement. It has been widely reported that the failure to receive approvals from Chinese antitrust authorities precipitated the deal’s termination. In accordance with the terms of the merger agreement, Intel will pay a termination fee of $353 million to Tower Semiconductor.

Intel and Tower Semiconductor entered into an agreement Feb. 15, 2022, in which Intel would acquire the Israeli firm for $5.4 billion and $53 per share in cash. According to Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, the company will continue to look for opportunities to work with Tower in the future. Intel launched its Intel Foundry Services (IFS) business in 2021. IFS posted a more than 300% year-over-year revenue increase in the second quarter of 2023. The company also established an agreement with Synopsys to develop a portfolio of intellectual property on Intel 3 and Intel 18A process nodes.