The development is targeted to cater to solar, LCD, nanotechnology, aerospace and semiconductor companies. For now, the firms are concentrating on its solar investment, and the developers hope to make it a solar-technology destination with solar power plants.

Work is underway on the project's first phase, which is the installation of infrastructure, at a cost of $35 million. ING Clarion, part of the Netherlands-based ING Group, is funding the infrastructure costs and will provide build-to-suit lease for firms interested in locating at Silicon Border. Other plans include a university, training and research facilities, recreation areas and a clubhouse.

Ponway, CA-based Silicon Border Development was founded in 2001 to plan and see through the project. Its management is made up of high-tech, finance, real estate and IT professionals.

The team's executives hope that the park can compete with Asian manufacturing plants. "The trend has been to shift manufacturing to South Asia over the past 20 years and we are now providing an alternative to that model," says Daniel Hill, Silicon Border Development's president and CEO, in a statement. "We will see a portion of manufacturing remain in North America, enabling both Mexico and (the) US to participate in the technology."