Biden to visit Samsung Electronics chip factory during visit

U.S. President Joe Biden is scheduled to visit a Samsung Electronics chip manufacturing complex during his state visit to Korea this week.

Samsung Electronics' chip manufacturing complex in Pyeongtaek, Gyoenggi [SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS]

U.S. President Joe Biden is scheduled to visit a Samsung Electronics chip manufacturing complex during his state visit to Korea this week.

Representatives from the company, the country's largest, will be attending a session hosted by the U.S. Department of Commerce and Korea's Industry Ministry.

Other Korean companies invited to the business roundtable on May 21 include LG Electronics, SK Inc., Hyundai Motor, Hanwha Corporation, Naver, Lotte and OCI, multiple sources with knowledge of the matter confirmed.

"The companies have received the invitation," said a source who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "But many of them haven't made a decision on a main attendee because it remains unclear whether the meeting will be hosted by the presidents or the Industry Minister and the Secretary of Commerce."

President Yoon Suk-yeol and Biden will tour the Samsung Electronics complex in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi, according to local media outlets.

Samsung Electronics declined to confirm.

The electronics company has invested 100 trillion won ($79 billion) in the 2.9-million-square-meter (31-million-square-feet) facility where it manufactures advanced memory and custom system-on-chips.

The two presidents will likely stress the significance of semiconductors in the global economy and economic security.

The Korean chipmaker last year announced a $17 billion investment in Taylor, Texas, to build a new chip fabrication plant.

"Given that the ground-breaking is imminent for the U.S. factory, it is possible that Samsung Electronics will announce that during Biden's visit," said another source in the semiconductor industry.

Samsung Electronics initially planned to break ground at the site — located some 50 miles from its existing chip plant in Austin — in the first quarter of 2022 with the aim of commencing operations in the final quarter of 2024.

Hyundai Motor is in talks with Georgia to build a factory in the state, according to a Reuters report. The factory will be the Korean automaker's first EV-dedicated facility in the United States.

Hanwha Solutions announced last week that it will invest 200 billion won to produce high-performance solar power modules in the United States. It did not specify a location. Another 180 billion won will be invested in ramping up production capacity for photovoltaic modules and cells in Korea.

OCI, a local energy and chemical company, has been spearheading solar energy projects in Texas, New Jersey and Georgia.

Lotte announced last week the purchase of a Bristol-Myers Squibb bio plant in Syracuse, New York for $160 million. Lotte Biologics, a soon-to-be-formed company, will undertake the acquisition.

Naver's U.S. business is centered around the webtoon business, but the main topic being discussed at the roundtable will be net neutrality, an issue that divides local internet service providers and U.S. streaming service companies, such as Netflix.

BY PARK EUN-JEE [park.eunjee@joongang.co.kr]