Intel plans to convert its Dalian fab, which has been making processor chips in China since 2010, to make non-volatile memory chips used in smartphones and data storage devices, reported the Wall Street Journal on October 20. The conversion project is expected to cost as much as US$5.5 billion over the next three to five years. Intel currently relies on a joint venture with Micron to make flash memory chips. The two companies have recently developed the so-called 3D NAND chips, which can store data with multiple layers to boost storage capacity. The Dalian fab is slated to make such chips in the second half of 2016, according to Intel.