Samsung Group to spend $206 bn on chip and bio expansion over next three years

[Graphics by Song Ji-yoon]

Samsung Electronics Co. and other flagships under Samsung Group will invest total 240 trillion won ($206 billion) of which 180 trillion won will be spent at home, and hire 40,000 over the next three years to defend its chip leadership and initiate vaccine and gene-based development.

Samsung has decided to up its three-year investment to 240 trillion won from 180 trillion won spending over the last three years (130 trillion won at home) to bolster competitiveness and leadership in strategic businesses through aggressive mergers and acquisitions and expansions in the post-pandemic environment, Samsung Electronics said in a statement Tuesday.

[Photo by Park Hyung-ki]

The capex plan came out 11 days after Jay Y. Lee, Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics and de facto head of Samsung Group, was released from prison on parole after serving 60 percent of his jail term for bribing former impeached President Park Geun-hye.

Samsung Electronics shares closed Tuesday 3.1 percent up at 75,600 won as investors welcomed the long-awaited capex news towards the end of the session.

On chips, facilities will be upscaled to mass-produce DRAMs in 14-or-under nano process and NAND flash from 200 or above layers. It will hasten mass-production of 3-nano or lower processing at foundries to hone competitiveness in system chip production.

[Source: Samsung Electronics Co.]

Bio is another area Samsung Group would be fostering as its “second chip legend.”

Samsung Biologics already No. 1 CDMO with 620,000-liter capacity and Samsung Bioepis entering clinical testing on its 10th investigational biosimilar will continue with “aggressive investment and expansion” to ensure leadership in bioproducts and also venture into vaccine and cell/gene-based therapies.

Other spending will go to wireless networking, AI, and robotics.

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