June 25 (Reuters) - Mining giant BHP-backed I-Pulse said on Thursday it had signed an agreement with the U.S. Department of Commerce for a $250 million award to advance its semiconductor and pulsed-power technology.
The award from the department's CHIPS Research and Development Office is aimed at supporting U.S. semiconductor research, domestic manufacturing capacity and supply-chain resilience.
• The company, co-founded by mining financier Robert Friedland and Chief Technology Officer Laurent Frescaline, said the funding would help develop high-performance silicon-carbide semiconductor components used in pulsed-power systems.
• I-Pulse added the pulsed-power systems can be applied in geothermal drilling, mining, rock crushing, manufacturing and defense.
• In geothermal drilling, for example, the pulses fracture can increase drilling speed and drill-bit life and potentially lower costs, the company said.
• The program would be led bythe Albuquerque team, near Sandia National Laboratories and the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, and would involve U.S. national laboratories, universities and specialized manufacturers.
(Reporting by Dharna Bafna in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore)
