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In
April, SK Hynix, the world's second-largest memory chip maker,
said it would invest around $3.87 billion to build the facility
that will include an advanced chip production line to
mass-produce next-generation high bandwidth memory chips,
currently used in graphic processing units that train artificial
intelligence systems, the Nvidia supplier said.
The department also plans to make available $500 million in
government loans for the SK Hynix project, which is expected to
qualify for a 25% investment tax credit.
The memory packaging plant for artificial intelligence products
and an advanced packaging R&D facility will create 1,000 jobs
and fill a key gap in the U.S. semiconductor supply chain, the
department said.
Congress in August 2022 approved a $39 billion subsidy program
for U.S. semiconductor manufacturing and related components
along with $75 billion in government lending authority.
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said the department has
announced term sheets with 15 companies offering about $30
billion in funding that "will unlock another $300 billion of
private capital."
The United States now has major commitments from all five major
leading edge semiconductor chip manufacturers - TSMC, Intel,
Samsung Electronics, Micron and SK Hynix.
"It means we in the United States will have the most secure and
diverse supply chain in the world for the advanced
semiconductors that power artificial intelligence," Raimondo
told reporters. The department added no other economy in the
world "has more than two of these companies producing
leading-edge chips on its shores."
SK Hynix's West Lafayette, Indiana facility will be home to an
advanced semiconductor packaging line mass producing
next-generation high-bandwidth memory chips that are key
components of graphics processing units that train AI systems.
SK Hynix CEO Kwak Noh-Jung said in a statement the company
deeply appreciates "the U.S. Department of Commerce's support
and are excited to collaborate in seeing this transformational
project fully realized."
Commerce in May said it planned to award $75 million to Absolics
for constructing a facility in Georgia to supply advanced
materials to the country's semiconductor industry. The planned
award is to an affiliate of SKC Co, which in turn is part of
South Korea's second-largest conglomerate SK Group, as is SK
Hynix.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Christopher Cushing)
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