SK Hynix is spending $38 billion to build two new chip fabs

SK Hynix announced a 54 trillion won ($38 billion) investment to build two new chip fabrication plants in South Korea, the company said. The South Korean memory manufacturer plans to construct the Y2 fab in Yongin and the M17 fab in Cheongju as part of a broader 700 trillion won investment strategy. Construction of the Cheongju M17 plant is expected to begin in February 2027 with the first cleanroom scheduled to open in December 2028. The facility will focus primarily on NAND flash chip production. The Yongin Y2 plant, the second of four planned for the Yongin Semiconductor Cluster, will begin construction in July 2027 with its first cleanroom ready by June 2029. The Y2 plant will increase DRAM production capacity and house equipment for high-bandwidth memory and next-generation DRAM chips. An unnamed SK Hynix official said the company aims to become a key partner in AI infrastructure contributing to the stability of the global AI semiconductor supply chain. Analysts say new data center plans are largely on paper while major technology companies continue to buy available memory chips. SK Hynix predicts the supply chain crisis will peak between 2027 and 2030 with the new plants coming online as the market begins to settle.