Samsung to build $17B chip factory in Texas

Samsung said it plans to build a $17 billion semiconductor factory outside of Austin, Texas, amid a global shortage of chips used in phones, cars and other electronic devices.

“This is the largest foreign direct investment in the state of Texas, ever,” Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said in announcing the project Tuesday.

Samsung said it will start building the Texas plant next year and hopes to begin operations in second half of 2024.

The South Korean electronics giant chose the site based on a number of factors, including government incentives and the “readiness and stability” of local infrastructure, said Samsung Vice Chairman Kinam Kim, speaking alongside the Republican governor.

The chip shortage has emerged as both a business obstacle and a serious U.S. national-security concern.

Short supplies of semiconductors kicked off by COVID-era shutdowns have hampered production of new vehicles and electronic devices for more than a year.

New questions of economic and national security are also at stake since many U.S. companies are dependent on chips produced overseas, particularly in Taiwan, which China has long claimed as its own territory.

Many chipmakers are spreading out their manufacturing operations, now concentrated in Asia, in response to the shortages, which have taken a toll on sectors from automakers to the video game industry.