SK hynix may add factory in US and expand Yongin chip cluster project

SK hynix building an R&D center in the United States may add a factory as well and expand investment in its ambitious project to create a chip cluster in Yongin in Korea, according to SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won.

The world’s second-largest memory maker also does not plan any downsizing or moderation in the status quo of its Chinese operation even if an upgrade is difficult due to the U.S. shipment ban on exporting high-tech equipment like extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography to China.

“Cost may rise (if the ban takes place). Still, the Chinese operation will run normally,” Chey told reporters on the sidelines of the Trans-Pacific Dialogue in Washington.

SK Hynix, which purchased $4 billion worth EUV machines, has faced a setback in employing one of them in its DRAM facility in Wuxi to move onto the next-gen processing after Washington has barred the Dutch maker from shipping the equipment to China.

[Source: Press Corp.]

The chipmaker could consider building a chip factory in the U.S. since it is a huge market. “Time has come to examine what preparations are needed and if it (U.S factory) is a sustainable option,” he said.

Its bigger rival Samsung Electronics recently finalized its roadmap for a $17 billion foundry project in Texas, its second facility in the U.S.

SK hynix also could make a bigger investment in Yongin, where the chipmaker has pledged 120 trillion won ($101 billion) to build four next-gen chip facilities.

The ongoing conflict between the U.S. and China could impact the chip sector, but the industry prospects will rely more on global demand, he said.

He found climate change a bigger risk than the geopolitical crisis

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