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Samsung Electronics is investing 10 billion dollars (about 11 trillion won) to expand its state-of-the-art production line at its foundry (semiconductor consignment production) plant in Austin, Texas (pictured). It is evaluated for the purpose of securing additional US customers such as Intel while checking Taiwan TSMC, which has decided to build a foundry plant in the US. Foundry is a business that produces and delivers products by receiving orders from semiconductor companies that do not have or lack factories such as fabless (semiconductor design companies).
Bloomberg News reported on the 22nd that “Samsung Electronics is considering building a semiconductor plant in Austin, Texas, with more than 10 billion dollars investment.” Currently, in Austin, Samsung Electronics’ foundry plant, which focuses on the line width (the width of the transistor gate through which electrons flow), 14nm (nanometer, 1nm = 1 billionth of a meter), 28nm, and 32nm processes, is running. Bloomberg cited a person familiar with the matter, saying, “Samsung Electronics’ goal is to go through a pilot operation in 2022 and start operating in earnest from 2023.” Samsung Electronics is currently developing 3nm process technology.
Samsung Electronics’ expansion is analyzed for the purpose of holding back TSMC, the world’s No. 1 foundry company. TSMC decided to build a new plant in Arizona, US with a total investment of 12 billion dollars (about 13 trillion won) last year. The goal is to be completed in 2024. A cutting-edge foundry line of less than 5nm is expected to be built.
When TSMC’s US plant is operational, TSMC is expected to attract the latest semiconductor outsourcing production of major foundry customers such as Intel, Nvidia, Qualcomm, and AMD. Currently, the main line of Samsung Electronics’ Austin plant is 14nm, so there is a limit to producing the latest AP (application processor). Bloomberg said, “Samsung is trying to catch up with rival Taiwanese TSMC.”
Samsung Electronics has secured a site for new facilities around the Austin plant. From 2018 to October last year, it has steadily purchased a land area of 104,089 square meters with 140 soccer fields. Samsung Electronics has requested the Austin City Council for approval of the site development.
When Samsung Electronics and TSMC complete new factories in the US, competition for semiconductor orders is expected to intensify. The market is expected to grow even further as it recently announced that it will expand “outsourced semiconductor production” to Intel, an integrated semiconductor company (IDM).
Samsung Electronics said, “Nothing has been decided” regarding the expansion of the factory.
Reporter Hwang Jeong-soo [email protected]
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