(Reuters) – Intel and the German government are close to an agreement for the chipmaker to receive 9.9 billion euros ($10.83 billion) in subsidies, up from a previously agreed 6.8 billion, Handelsblatt reported on Thursday, citing government sources.
Final negotiations will take place this weekend, the newspaper reported, with Intel Chief Executive Pat Geisinger and government representatives to sign an agreement in Berlin on Monday.
Intel and the economy ministry were not immediately available for comment outside working hours.
The additional funds are to come from a budget under the responsibility of the economy minister, who campaigned heavily for the extra subsidies in the face of resistance from Finance Minister Christian Lindner, according to Handelsblatt.
Intel, which announced last year it had picked the central German city of Magdeburg for a new chip-making complex, had raised its demand for subsidies to around 10 billion euros citing higher energy and construction costs.
($1 = 0.9138 euros)
(Reporting by Victoria Waldersee; editing by Barbara Lewis)
