[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] Ahead of the South Korea-U.S. summit scheduled to take place in the United States on the 21st, the four major domestic conglomerates are either announcing or preparing to announce their local investment plans in the U.S. The business community is closely watching Samsung Electronics' decision. This is because, while pledging an investment exceeding 170 trillion won to foster the domestic system semiconductor industry, Samsung is continuously considering expanding semiconductor factories in the U.S. worth tens of trillions of won.
According to the business community on the 16th, key executives from Samsung, SK, and LG groups are expected to accompany President Moon Jae-in unofficially as part of an economic delegation during his South Korea-U.S. summit trip. With these corporate leaders expected to join, it is anticipated that the investment outlines of related domestic companies will be concretized as a 'gift' to the Biden administration, which has declared a reorganization of supply chains centered on semiconductors and batteries in the U.S.
Samsung Electronics Considering Expansion of Foundry Plant Worth 20 Trillion Won
Among the four major groups, Samsung Electronics is considering the largest investment scale for expanding its foundry (semiconductor contract manufacturing) plant in the U.S. The new investment amount is reported to be $17 billion (approximately 20 trillion won). Following the existing foundry plant operating in Austin, Texas, Samsung plans to add two new lines locally and is currently scouting candidate sites, with Austin, New York, and Arizona being mentioned since last year.
Pressure from the U.S. side to invest continues. Earlier, Samsung Electronics was the only domestic company to attend a semiconductor video conference hosted by the White House last month and has also been invited to a video conference hosted by the U.S. Department of Commerce on the 20th. Taiwanese TSMC and U.S. Intel declared semiconductor investments in the U.S. around the time of the video conference, supporting the Biden administration. Samsung Electronics has not yet made any notable moves. For this reason, the business community expects that "Samsung Electronics may formalize its investment plans around the South Korea-U.S. summit."
On the 13th, Samsung Electronics pledged to invest 171 trillion won by 2030 to foster the domestic system semiconductor industry, supporting the government's recently announced 'K-Semiconductor Strategy.' However, regarding whether the investment plans under consideration in the U.S. are included in this or will proceed separately, the company stated, "Nothing has been specifically decided, and detailed information cannot be disclosed."
Hyundai Motor, SK, LG, and Others Announce Investment Plans
Samsung Holds Over Half of Total Investment 'Gift Package'
Other major companies are also announcing investment plans. Hyundai Motor Group announced on the 13th an investment plan to inject a total of $7.4 billion (8.1417 trillion won) into electric vehicle production facilities, hydrogen, urban air mobility (UAM), robotics, and autonomous driving in the U.S. by 2025. Hyundai will gradually expand local production facilities and plans to start producing electric vehicles next year. The industry expects that Hyundai will first produce the Ioniq 5 through the expansion of its Alabama plant and subsequently produce other electric vehicle models sequentially.
Among electric vehicle battery companies, LG Energy Solution announced last month a plan to establish a second joint electric vehicle battery plant with the U.S. automaker GM (General Motors) in Ohio. Besides the joint plant, the company plans to invest over 5 trillion won in two other locations in the U.S. by 2025 to build independent battery factories. The company plans to complete site selection by the first half of this year, so construction plans may be announced soon. SK Innovation, which is building and operating battery plants 1 and 2 in Georgia, is currently considering additional construction of plants 3 and 4 with an investment scale of about 3 trillion won. Samsung SDI, another electric vehicle battery company, is also reportedly considering building factories in the U.S. through joint ventures.
Summarizing these details, the total confirmed or under-consideration investment amount by the four major domestic groups in the U.S. reaches approximately 40 trillion won. Among these, Samsung Electronics' planned investment accounts for more than half.
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