“Construction of water and power first even if it is late”... Potential for expansion of Honam Semiconductor revealed
(Gwangju, South Jeolla Province = Yonhap News) Reporter Jang Deok-jong = SK Group Chairman Choi Tae-won visited the Gwangju Military Airport, the planned site of the Honam semiconductor cluster, on the 9th and expressed his strong will to invest.
The creation of the Honam semiconductor cluster has gained further momentum as the group head personally cleared up concerns about the implementation of actual investments raised by some.
On this afternoon, Chairman Choi visited the military airport site with Jeonnam Gwangju Unified Special Mayor Min Hyeong-bae and SK Hynix executives to review the site status and business conditions.
We inspected the preparedness of key infrastructure such as power and water, and also confirmed the site where the ammunition depot is scheduled to be relocated within the military airport where the fab will be located.
Chairman Choi, who toured the military airport, said, "We will build as much as possible at the fastest speed. Even if water and power are delayed, if we can get the timing right quickly, we will start construction first," expressing his will to speed up and expand the business at the same time.
It was also announced that the Yongin Semiconductor Cluster and the Honam Semiconductor Cluster will be developed together in preparation for the rapidly increasing demand for semiconductors.
He predicted, “We estimate that the demand for semiconductors will continue to grow at a fairly rapid rate,” and “another site and (semiconductor fab) will be needed to be built, and if necessary, there will likely be a situation where it will have to be built in parallel (with the Yongin Semiconductor Cluster).”
The possibility of expanding the scale of Honam Semiconductor according to demand for semiconductors was also indicated.
Chairman Choi emphasized, “If there is more land and more demand, I fully expect this (Honam Semiconductor) to grow even bigger.”
Chairman Choi's visit is said to be meaningful in that the head of the group personally visited the semiconductor site, confirmed business conditions, and expressed his will to quickly pursue the project.
Among some of the negative views on the Honam semiconductor cluster project, there were concerns that SK might postpone the 'Gwangju project' after the creation of the Yongin cluster or that it might be delayed for a long time depending on the global semiconductor economy, but Chairman Choi's visit to Gwangju is believed to have resolved these uncertainties.
SK Hynix has visited the military airport site several times to inspect the investment situation and discuss support matters with Gwangju City, South Jeolla Province.
The city plans to cooperate closely with the government and related organizations to secure key infrastructure such as land, power, and water in a timely manner in accordance with the company's investment schedule, and to create a stable investment environment such as talent training and settlement conditions.
Mayor Min Hyeong-bae said, "Chairman Choi himself has clearly revealed his intention to promote a semiconductor cluster," and emphasized, "We will firmly support key infrastructure such as land, power, and water, as well as talent training and settlement conditions, so that SK Hynix can stably build and operate a world-class semiconductor factory in an optimal environment."
SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics plan to invest 800 trillion won to create a semiconductor cluster at the military airport.
The government and Jeonnam Gwangju City are developing 2.5 million pyeong of land around the military airport as a national semiconductor industrial complex, and are aiming to begin site development in 2027, construct a fab in 2028, and begin mass production in 2030.
