SK Hynix invests 90 billion euros for new plants

South Korean semiconductor manufacturer SK Hynix has planned to build a mega-factory complex, which has now been approved by South Korean authorities.

Four new semiconductor plants

SK Hynix is one of the largest semiconductor manufacturers in the world, ranking number three here. In South Korea, the group ranks second, right after Samsung. Now the group wants to grow further and build a huge complex with four new semiconductor plants. This construction project is expected to cost 120 trillion South Korean won, or a whole 90 billion euros. The project could not be started yet, because the corresponding approval was still pending. This was now granted to SK Hynix on Monday by the Ministry of Trade in South Korea, so it can start.

The new building complex has already been planned for some time and is to be built about 50 km from the capital Seoul. With the investment of the equivalent of 106 billion US dollars, even Intel will be puffed with envy. Intel has recently planned to invest 20 billion US dollars in new factories.

Plans have been open for two years

SK Hynix had disclosed the plans for the four new semiconductor factories about two years ago. In the process, the huge fab complex is to have a total area of 4.15 million square meters. The plan is for the four semiconductor plants to produce 800,000 wafers per month once built.

According to local media reports, Yongin will produce DRAM chips and new-generation memory chips in particular. Construction of the fab complex will begin this year. Groundbreaking should then be in the last quarter and completion is planned for 2025. Apart from the fact that SK Hynix wants to strengthen its position on the market with the four new plants, the current bottlenecks with semiconductor products are also to be counteracted. The demand for semiconductor products continues to rise and so SK Hynix can also contribute its part here or get something from the cake.

Deal with Intel

Currently, SK Hynix is ranked third among the largest semiconductor manufacturers in the world. In order to get further ahead here, the manufacturer is also upgrading NAND flashes for smartphones and SSDs. The takeover of Intel’s flash memory division is therefore planned. The takeover is to cost SK Hynix 9 billion US dollars, if the authorities approve the deal. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) recently approved at least the acquisition of Intel’s NAND factory in China. With the acquisition, SK Hynix would no longer be in third place, but would then be the second largest manufacturer of NAND flash after Samsung. So the development of SK Hynix remains exciting.