Samsung fast-tracks first Yongin chip plant, targets 2029 launch as AI demand surges

Samsung Electronics is moving to begin operations at the first semiconductor fabrication plant in its Yongin chip cluster in 2029, one to two years earlier than planned, industry sources said on Sunday.

The accelerated timeline comes as the government speeds up development of the Yongin National Industrial Complex, a national strategic project set to serve as the company's next-generation semiconductor manufacturing hub, reports Yonhap news agency.

Samsung is currently planning to begin operations in 2029 at the first of six semiconductor plants to be built at the Yongin industrial complex, just south of Seoul, according to the sources.

"An earlier start of operations at the first plant will enable Samsung to respond more quickly to rapidly growing global demand for artificial intelligence chips," an industry official said.

Separately, the chipmaker said last month that, under its mega project investment plan, it plans to invest 2,030 trillion won (US$1.35 trillion) in its Pyeongtaek and Yongin semiconductor clusters, along with 400 trillion won to build two new chip plants in Gwangju, 270 kilometers south of Seoul.

Meanwhile, Samsung Group and SK Group vowed a combined investment of 896 trillion won ($578 billion) in the southwest region, in line with the government's vision of pursuing shared growth in the artificial intelligence (AI) industry, the industry ministry said.

In response to the investment pledges, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources pledged to provide the necessary support for their smooth implementation.

The announcement came after the government unveiled what it calls the tripolar mega projects, aimed at advancing technologies across the country and turning South Korea into an industrial powerhouse in the emerging AI era.

In detail, SK Group pledged to invest 470 trillion won in the southwest region to build two semiconductor fabs, as well as a 1-gigawatt AI data centre.

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