By Mark LaPedus
Thomas Caulfield will step down as president and chief executive of GlobalFoundries (GF) in April.
Caulfield, who became president and CEO of GF in 2018, has been appointed executive chairman of the foundry company. He succeeds Ahmed Yahia, who will step down from the board and his role as chairman after more than a decade in the position.
Tim Breen, chief operating officer at GF, has been named chief executive of GF. Breen, who has been with GF since 2018, succeeds Caulfield in the CEO role. In addition, Niels Anderskouv, GF’s chief business officer, has been appointed GF’s president and COO.
These changes will become effective April 28, 2025. This leadership transition positions GF to accelerate its next phase of growth.
The changes also follow various merger and acquisition rumors in the marketplace. Intel is rumored to be connected with several potential buyers for its struggling chip business, according to reports from SemiAccurate, TrendForce and others. GF is reportedly in the mix, according to the reports. No deal has been announced—yet.
GF expands, contracts
GF, the world’s fifth largest foundry vendor, recently reported sales of $1.739 billion for the third quarter of 2024, up 7% from the previous quarter but down 6% year-over-year. Net income was $178 million for the quarter, up 15% from the previous quarter but down 29% year-over-year.
GF is expanding its operations. Last year, GF was awarded up to $1.5 billion in direct funding under the CHIPS Act. The funds will enable GF to expand its chip manufacturing and technology development in the U.S.
In January 2025, GF announced plans to create a new center for advanced packaging and testing within its New York manufacturing facility. The plant is supported by investments from the State of New York and the U.S. Department of Commerce. GF’s New York Advanced Packaging and Photonics Center is expected to offer:
*Advanced packaging, assembly and testing for GF’s silicon photonics platform.
*Turnkey advanced packaging, bump, assembly and testing for aerospace and defense customers under GF’s Trusted Foundry accreditation.
*New production capabilities for advanced packaging, wafer-to-wafer bonding, assembly and testing.
GF, however, has scrapped its fab plans in Europe. STMicroelectronics and GF recently shelved a joint wafer fab project in France, according to a report from eeNews Europe.
Q4 results
Meanwhile, on Feb. 11, GF reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2024.
Revenue was $1.83 billion for the quarter, up 5% from the previous quarter but down 1% from the like period a year ago. Net loss was $729 million for the quarter, compared to a profit of $178 million from the previous quarter and a profit of $278 million from the like period a year ago.
In the fourth quarter 2024, GF recorded a $935 million impairment charge on the long-lived assets relating to legacy investments in production capacity at its facility in Malta, N.Y.
In 2024, GF posted sales of $6.75 billion with a net loss of $262 million. “Fab utilization rates improved to high-70% exiting CY24,” said Krish Sankar, an analyst at TD Cowen, in a research note.
GF’s capital spending finished at $625 million in 2024, according to TD Cowen. The company’s capital spending should increase modestly to $700 million in 2025, according to Sankar.
For the first quarter of 2025, GF predicted that its sales would fall between $1.550 billion to $1.600 billion with a net income from $78 million to $142 million.