November 23, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Electronics held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new chip production line in Xian, China, with plans to invest a total of US$7 billion by 2020.

The event which was attended by Chinese government officials and top company executives comes after the Korean tech giant’s agreement with the Shannxi province government in August 2017.

The first chip production line for memory chips built in 2014 has reached full capacity of operations.

“The second Xian line will be able to offer high-end memory chips and differentiated solutions for our customers,” said Kim Ki-nam, head of the firm’s chip business, adding the plant will also help cater to the needs of Chinese IT companies located in the city.

Samsung will utilize the new line to roll out vertical NAND flash memory chips in a bid to respond to the surging demand.

The second Xian line is capable of producing 100,000 wafers per month while the first line can churn out 120,000 wafer units per month.

Market research firm IHS Markit forecast that the global NAND flash memory sector will grow to a record US$59.2 billion in size. The memory chip market has been enjoying booming demand thanks to the increasing use of chips in a range of sectors, including data servers, Internet of Things and next-generation telecommunications technology.

By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)