Samsung Expands its Foundry Capacity with a New Production Line in Korea

Samsung announced plans to boost its foundry capacity at the company’s new production line in Pyeongtaek, Korea. The new line is necessary to meet growing global demand for cutting-edge extreme ultraviolet (EUV) solutions.

The new foundry line, which will focus on EUV-based 5 nanometer (nm) and below process technology, has commenced construction this month and is expected to be in full operation in the second half of 2021. It will play a pivotal role as Samsung aims to expand the use of state-of-the-art process technologies across a myriad of current and next generation applications, including 5G, HPC and AI.

“This new production facility will expand our manufacturing capabilities for sub-5nm process and enable us to rapidly respond to the increasing demand for EUV-based solutions,“ said ES Jung, President and Head of Foundry Business at Samsung. “We remain committed to addressing the needs of our customers through active investments and recruitment of talents. This will enable us to continue to break new ground while driving robust growth for Samsung’s foundry business.“

Following the initial mass production of the EUV-based 7nm process in early 2019, Samsung recently added a new EUV-dedicated V1 line in Hwaseong, Korea, to its global foundry network. With the new Pyeongtaek facility starting full operation in 2021, their foundry capacity based on EUV is expected to increase significantly.

The company will start mass production of 5nm EUV process in the Hwaseong fab in the second half of this year. With the addition of the Pyeongtaek fab, Samsung will have a total of seven foundry production lines located in South Korea and the United States, comprised of six 12-inch lines and one 8-inch line.