Key facts
- Samsung Group and SK Group pledged a combined 896 trillion won (US$578 billion) for investment in South Korea's southwest region.
- SK Group will invest 470 trillion won to establish two semiconductor fabs and a 1-gigawatt AI data center.
- Samsung Group plans to invest 425 trillion won for two memory fabs and an AI computing center.
- Amkor Technology will invest 1 trillion won to expand its packaging facility in Gwangju.
- The government's S-WEST Vision will provide support for site acquisition, utilities, institutional backing, and talent.
- The initiative aims to transform the southwest into a strategic hub for cutting-edge industries and a second semiconductor production center.
Samsung Group and SK Group have committed a combined 896 trillion won (US$578 billion) in investments for South Korea's southwest region, aligning with the government's push for shared growth in artificial intelligence and semiconductors. This initiative is part of the government's 'tripolar mega projects' aimed at advancing national technologies and establishing South Korea as an AI-era industrial powerhouse.
SK Group plans to invest 470 trillion won in the region, which includes building two semiconductor fabrication plants and a 1-gigawatt AI data center. Samsung Group will contribute 425 trillion won to construct two memory fabrication plants and an AI computing center. Additionally, Amkor Technology, a semiconductor back-end company, pledged 1 trillion won to expand its packaging facility in Gwangju.
In response to these corporate pledges, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources announced the S-WEST Vision, promising government support for site acquisition, water and electricity supply, institutional backing, and talent development. The ministry stated that the substantial investment aims to reshape the economic landscape of the region and the nation, positioning the southwest as a second semiconductor production hub after the Seoul metropolitan area and a new strategic center for cutting-edge industries.