The US Department of Commerce announced plans to grant SK Hynix up to $450 million to help fund a new advanced packaging plant and R&D facility in Indiana. This plant will focus on AI products. In April, SK Hynix, the world’s second-largest memory chip maker, said it would invest around $3.87 billion to build this facility in West Lafayette, Indiana.
The plant will include an advanced chip production line for next-generation high-bandwidth memory chips, used in graphic processing units for AI systems. Additionally, the Commerce Department plans to provide $500 million in government loans for the SK Hynix project, which will also qualify for a 25% investment tax credit.
The new facility is expected to create 1,000 jobs and strengthen the US semiconductor supply chain. In August 2022, the US Congress approved a $39 billion subsidy program for semiconductor manufacturing and related components, along with $75 billion in government lending authority.
US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said the department has announced term sheets with 15 companies, offering about $30 billion in funding, which is expected to attract another $300 billion in private capital. The US now has commitments from all five major leading-edge semiconductor manufacturers: TSMC, Intel, Samsung, Micron, and SK Hynix.
“This ensures the US will have the most secure and diverse supply chain for advanced semiconductors powering AI,” Raimondo said. SK Hynix CEO Kwak Noh-jung expressed gratitude for the support from the US Department of Commerce, saying the company is excited to see the project fully realized.
In May, the department announced plans to award $75 million to Absolics Inc. for a facility in Georgia to supply advanced materials to the US semiconductor industry. Absolics is an affiliate of SKC Co, which is part of South Korea’s SK Group, alongside SK Hynix.
