Samsung’s New Investment in Texas Accelerates Rebuild of US Supply Chain

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Dr. Kinam Kim, vice chairman and CEO of Samsung Electronics Device Solutions Division, announce that the chip-making company will build a $17 billion plant in Central Texas. (Courtesy of Samsung)

Upon Samsung finalizing site selection for its new factory on U.S. soil, South Korean media have commented that the investment is expected to deal a blow to China’s ambitions in becoming a semiconductor giant as the United States moves to secure its own supply-chains.

Samsung announced on Nov. 23 that it will invest $17 billion to build a new semiconductor manufacturing plant in Taylor, Texas. It’s a grand-scale investment by the tech giant in the midst of a global semiconductor chip shortage, and the largest investment in the United States by far.

The U.S. government and Texas governor have applauded Samsung’s bold investment plan.

The new facility is expected to create over 2,000 high-tech jobs directly as well as thousands more related jobs, Samsung said in a press release.

“This indicates that Samsung is putting more emphasis on the U.S. supply chain, and it could be understood as Samsung participating and supporting the U.S.-led supply-chain reconstruction,” Jinwoo Lee, head of the Investment Strategy Group of Meritz Securities in South Korea, told The Epoch Times.

“The possibility for Korea to strengthen its ties with the United States is much higher than before, at least in the technology sector,” he added.

In a Dec. 1 editorial titled, “Korea, Taiwan Join US Semiconductor Alliance, Causing Major Blow to China,” The Korea Times said the alliance will “delay the rise of China’s semiconductor industry, stalling its pursuit in this field.”

In context of these investments, the editorial also mentioned that the 5G market-share of tech companies like Samsung increased after the United States sanctioned Chinese telecommunications company Huawei.

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“Furthermore, since core equipment exports to China from the United States are restricted, the semiconductor sectors of Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix were able to outrun the CCP’s pursuit in the global market with ease, especially in the non-storage field,” read The Korea Times editorial.

Samsung is not the only South Korean high-tech company that has decided to invest in the United States. SK Group and LG Corp., as well as General Motors, have all announced investment plans in various technology sectors in the United States, which include not only semiconductors, but also batteries, hydrogen technology, energy solutions, and electric vehicles.

Epoch Times reporter Lee Yunjung contributed to this report.