Samsung Electronics Plans Semiconductor Testing Factory in Vietnam

Hanoi. Samsung Electronics has a plan to build a semiconductor (chip) testing factory in Vietnam by investing about 390 trillion dong (approximately 1.5 billion US dollars). According to a proposal document reviewed by Reuters, this expansion is expected to help reduce the shortage of memory chips arising from the increasing global demand related to artificial intelligence (AI).

The new factory is being built in an industrial zone about 60 kilometers north of Hanoi. According to the document, the factory aims to start operations from November 2027. This will be Samsung's first chip testing factory in Vietnam. The supply of memory chips such as DRAM and NAND has been under pressure worldwide due to the rapid demand from AI data center operators, affecting the smartphone, laptop, and automobile industries as well.

According to the proposal, the factory will primarily focus on the production of traditional chips. Although such chips are not highly critical for the AI supply chain, the shortage of mature memory chips is also increasing as major manufacturers divert their production capacity towards AI chips. According to the document, the new plant will have the capacity to supply 153.3 billion gigabits (GB) of DRAM chips and 255.6 billion GB of NAND memory chips annually. This proposal was submitted to the local administration to obtain environmental permits. Samsung has not commented on the investment size, production capacity, and timeline.

Vietnamese authorities approved the investment in March. The documents state that Samsung plans to reinvest up to $2.5 billion from the project if there is any profit for a potential second factory. It is unclear whether the factory has obtained all necessary permits or if negotiations with the authorities are still ongoing. Vietnamese companies often start preliminary land work at construction sites while waiting for environmental permits.

At least more than 200 Samsung engineers and employees have been working at the project site since April, according to a person familiar with the matter. South Korea is Vietnam's largest foreign investor. In the past decade, it has committed investments of over $23 billion in Vietnam.