[News] SK hynix Unveils KRW 100T Cheongju Investment, Including KRW 80T NAND Fab Set for 1H29 Operations

SK hynix has unveiled a major new investment plan. According to ZDNet, President and CEO Kwak Noh-Jung announced at the National Briefing on the Vision for Advanced Industry Development in the Chungcheong Region on July 2 that the company will invest KRW 100 trillion in Cheongju. The plan allocates KRW 80 trillion to the M17 NAND fabrication plant and KRW 20 trillion to P&T7, SK hynix’s advanced packaging facility.

Construction of the new M17 fab is set to begin in 2027, with operations targeted to commence in the first half of 2029, according to Kwak. P&T7, meanwhile, is scheduled for completion by the end of 2027 and will serve as SK hynix’s advanced packaging hub, the report adds.

Kwak said the growing adoption of agentic AI and physical AI is broadening NAND flash applications, making further capacity expansion necessary, the report notes.

The report further notes that SK Group plans to build a 1-gigawatt (GW) AI data center in the Chungcheong region to create synergies between semiconductor manufacturing and AI computing. The group had previously announced plans to establish 15 GW of AI data center capacity across South Korea.

Samsung Unveils KRW 140 Trillion Investment Plan

Meanwhile, Samsung also announced KRW 140 trillion in investments at the same event, Newsis reports. The investment plan includes KRW 67 trillion to expand Samsung Display’s advanced OLED production lines in Asan, KRW 56 trillion for Samsung Electronics’ HBM fabs in Onyang and Cheonan, KRW 9 trillion for Samsung SDI to build a next-generation battery mother line in Cheonan, and KRW 8 trillion for Samsung Electro-Mechanics to establish high-performance AI server package substrate production in Sejong.

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• [News] Samsung, SK hynix 800 Trillion Won Expansion Strains Chipmaking Tool Supply, Potentially Pressures TSMC, Intel
• [News] Samsung Reportedly Expands 2nm Portfolio Ahead of 2029 SF1.4 Mass Production; SF2P+ Targets 2027–28

(Photo credit: SK hynix)