Samsung Secures $6.4B US Subsidy for 2nm Chips

The US government has announced a substantial subsidy of up to $6.4 billion to support Samsung Electronics in expanding its chip production facilities in Texas. This initiative aims to bolster semiconductor manufacturing capabilities within the state. Samsung's expansion project includes the establishment of a wafer fabrication plant, a research facility, and an advanced chip packaging factory situated in Taylor, Texas.

According to the US Department of Commerce, this subsidy will significantly augment Samsung's investment in Taylor, Texas, to approximately $45 billion, marking a substantial increase compared to its previous commitment made in 2021.

This funding injection brings the total financial support provided by the US Department of Commerce for major semiconductor manufacturing endeavors in the country to a significant sum of $23 billion for the current fiscal year.

The US Department of Commerce further highlights that Samsung's expansion project is anticipated to generate around 17,000 construction jobs and 4,500 manufacturing positions within the region.

Notably, Samsung had previously outlined plans in documents submitted to Texas indicating a potential investment of $200 billion over the next two decades to establish 11 new chip manufacturing plants in the state.

As per the US Department of Commerce's disclosure, the two chip manufacturing plants proposed by Samsung for Taylor will focus on producing 4nm and 2nm chips, catering primarily to the company's foundry business. Commencement of production is slated for 2026 and 2027.

In parallel, Samsung's envisaged advanced chip packaging facility will specialize in 3D packaging for High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), an essential component in artificial intelligence (AI) computing. Additionally, it will offer 2.5D packaging technology, facilitating the integration of logic chips and memory chips into a unified package, thus enhancing the efficacy of AI computing systems.

In a related development, the US administration recently announced a $6.6 billion subsidy for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC). This subsidy aims to catalyze TSMC's investment in the US, projected to increase by over 60% to exceed $650 billion. Moreover, TSMC pledges to domestically manufacture the world's most advanced 2nm chips as part of this initiative. This subsidy ranks as the second-largest allocation under the Chips and Science Act, following the $8.5 billion subsidy and $11 billion loan extended to Intel.