Samsung, the global electronics and appliances manufacturer, is expanding its stateside semiconductor operations. The Korean conglomerate will build a new $17 billion semiconductor fabricator, or “fab,” in Taylor, Texas, about 30 miles away from the company’s existing U.S. fab in Austin, according to a statement from the company.
The Wall Street Journal broke the story, citing people familiar with the matter, before Samsung confirmed it in a 5 o’clock local time announcement with Texas Governor Greg Abbott on November 23.
In a release, Samsung said the latest expansion should create more than 2,000 jobs, a higher figure than that originally predicted by the Wall Street Journal, which predicted 1,800 new jobs. The company said the factory would cover more than 5 million square meters, or 1.2 acres, and become operational by the second half of 2024 following groundbreaking in the first six months of 2022.
The semiconductor fabricator, or “fab,” will make advanced chips useful to mobile, 5G and artificial-intelligence application, Samsung said. Kinam Kim, CEO of Samsung’s electronic devices division, said the new factory will “lay the groundwork” for the company’s future.
“With greater manufacturing capacity, we will be able to better serve the needs of our customers and contribute to the stability of the global semiconductor supply chain,” Kim said. He also noted that Samsung has now been manufacturing semiconductors in the United States for 25 years.
Governor Abbott, during the announcement, said Samsung’s new factory is a testament to the state’s workforce and business climate. “Samsung’s new semiconductor manufacturing facility in Taylor will bring countless opportunities for hardworking Central Texans and their families and will play a major role in our state’s continued exceptionalism in the semiconductor industry.”
The $17 billion Samsung expects to invest in the plant will bring total foreign investment by Samsung in U.S. operations to $47 billion.
Samsung will receive substantial incentives for building and operating the plant in Taylor: According to the Austin Business Journal, the company can expect hundreds of millions of dollars in approved incentives, including property tax abatements.
The announcement is the second in less than a week of new semiconductor manufacturing in the Lone Star State. Texas Instruments Inc. announced November 19 that it would build a new semiconductor campus in Sherman, Texas, about 65 miles north of Dallas.
