Continuing unrest in the Middle East has caused Intel to relocate the lion's share of Pentium 4 production to its Leixlip plant, near Dublin, Ireland.

Leixlip is already on track to move to the 0.13 micron process, essential for volume production of Pentium 4s running at speeds of more than 2GHz. The proximity of the Qiryat Gat plant (Fab 18) to the hotly-disputed Gaza Strip has led Intel to relocate its prime production of the new chip to the safety of Ireland.

What impact the move will have on employment levels at Fab 18 remains to be seen. Intel refuses to comment officially on the relocation of P4 chip production. ®

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