SK Siltron to Invest 1.236 Trillion KRW in Factory Expansion in Gumi

Governor Lee Cheol-woo and President Jang Yong-ho MOU

1 Trillion Last Year... Creation of 1,000 Jobs

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Koo Dae-seon] Gyeongbuk Province and Gumi City officially announced on the 1st that Governor Lee Cheol-woo, Mayor Kim Jang-ho of Gumi, and SK Siltron President Jang Yong-ho signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) worth 1.2 trillion KRW at the Gumi SK Siltron headquarters for the expansion of silicon semiconductor wafer manufacturing facilities.

This investment by SK Siltron is an extension of last year's 1 trillion KRW investment, injecting 1.236 trillion KRW into Gumi National Industrial Complex 3, and from this year until 2026, expanding 300mm (12-inch) silicon wafer manufacturing facilities on a 42,716㎡ site with a total investment of 2.3 trillion KRW, creating 1,000 jobs in a mega project.

In particular, SK Siltron's investment is expected to give momentum to the attraction of the 'Gumi Semiconductor Industry Specialized Complex,' which closes application submissions on the 27th of this month.

If designated as a specialized complex, exceptional support such as exemption from preliminary feasibility studies, expedited approval procedures for site permits, various tax credits, and relaxed factory floor area ratios will be guaranteed, prompting not only local governments but also regional political circles to fiercely compete for its attraction.

A Gyeongbuk Province official stated, “The designation of Gumi as a semiconductor specialized complex signifies expanding the stage of private-sector economic activities, which were previously centered in the metropolitan area, to local regions. Based on this, if a university-centered regional development ecosystem is created in the provinces, it will become a model case for the Yoon Seok-yeol administration’s local era policy.”

SK Siltron signed an MOU in November 2021 to invest 190 billion KRW to expand a production plant for SiC semiconductor wafers, recognized as next-generation power semiconductors, within Gumi National Industrial Complex 2.

Additionally, through the 1 trillion KRW investment last March and this large-scale 1.236 trillion KRW investment agreement, SK Siltron delivered a message of hope to Gumi citizens aiming to designate Gumi as a semiconductor materials and components specialized complex.

SK Siltron, which possesses wafer manufacturing technology designated as a national core technology, produces 300mm (12-inch) and 200mm (8-inch) wafers with outstanding technological capabilities, having been selected as the ‘2022 Best Company in Materials, Parts, and Equipment’ by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

As of 2021, SK Siltron ranked 5th globally in wafer market share, and in the 300mm wafer market, which is preferred by integrated device manufacturers (IDMs) and is SK Siltron’s main production focus, it ranked 3rd worldwide. This investment aims to become the global number one in the 300mm wafer market in the future.

In Gumi, semiconductor companies are concentrated in line with its status as Korea’s representative electronics city.

Leading with SK Siltron, numerous semiconductor-related companies such as LG Innotek, MagnaChip Semiconductor, Woldeks, Wonik QnC, CoorsTek Korea, KEC, and Komatechnology are located here, raising expectations for Gumi to play a central role in Korea’s semiconductor industry.

The Gumi National 3 Industrial Complex, where SK Siltron plans to invest 1.236 trillion KRW to expand its silicon wafer factory.

Governor Lee Cheol-woo of Gyeongbuk Province said, “This investment will serve as a catalyst for Gumi, which once sparked Korea’s electronics industry, to become the best in Korea in competitiveness in advanced materials industries, especially the semiconductor industry,” adding, “We will continue to devote all efforts to attracting the semiconductor specialized complex and concentrate the province’s capabilities to attract semiconductor-related companies to the region, making Gumi the central city of the K-semiconductor belt.”

Gyeongbuk Province announced a plan last year to train 20,000 semiconductor specialists, and Kumoh National Institute of Technology revealed plans to supply talent through an agreement with SK Siltron, while Gumi Electronics Technical High School is being developed into a semiconductor specialized high school to provide on-site workforce to companies.