Samsung Electronics has disclosed plans to set up an advanced wafer fab in Texas. The new fab that will be equipped with advanced process manufacturing equipment and facilities will be striving to win advanced chip orders from AMD and other US chip vendors, according to industry sources.
Speculation has it that AMD and Qualcomm could be the first customers of Samsung's 3nm gate-all-around (GAA) process node.
But Samsung has yet to reveal details about fabrication process nodes that will be offered by its new US fab, the sources noted. Samsung only disclosed that the fab will manufacture products based on advanced process technologies for applications ranging from mobile, 5G, HPC and AI.
Samsung has been experiencing Japan's tighter export control on photoresists and other crucial materials used in South Korea's high-tech sector. Samsung is expected to be more capable of securing the crucial materials from major suppliers in Japan for its new Texas fab with US help to solve related trade disputes, the sources said.
Samsung estimated its total investment in the new US fab project at US$17 billion - which the company claimed will mark the largest-ever investment made by Samsung in the US. By making such a commitment, Samsung will be able to gain support from the US to enhance its advanced process market presence in terms of technology and output, the sources indicated.
It remains to be seen whether Samsung will equip its Texas fab with production equipment for its 3nm GAA process, which is seen as an opportunity for the South Korean company to gain a manufacturing lead, the sources said.
In addition, Samsung's advanced fab in Texas will provide US-based fabless chipmakers with another foundry source to diversify their supplier bases, according to the sources.
It is quite unlikley for AMD to work with Intel Foundry Services. But relying solely on TSMC will be unfavorable to the fabless chip vendors. AMD may diversify its foundry sources for 3nm products when its demand scales, the sources said.
Samsung is scheduled to break ground for the new fab in Texas in the first half of 2022, and expects to have it operational in the second half of 2024.
Article translated by Jessie Shen
