SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won announced today (31st) that SK hynix is considering establishing a semiconductor joint venture plant in Japan.

Visiting Japan to attend the Korea-Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry presidential meeting held in Sendai, Chairman Chey said in an interview with Bloomberg that he is reviewing the feasibility of a joint venture for memory chip production in Japan as one of the ways to meet surging artificial intelligence (AI) demand and reduce production costs.

Chairman Chey stated that he is looking across all of Japan for this purpose, adding, "We are considering anywhere that has abundant power and water."

However, Chairman Chey did not answer questions regarding potential partners or specific locations for establishment within Japan.

Chairman Chey, who also serves as the Chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, also said at an event addressing the declining working-age populations of both countries held ahead of the annual Korea-Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry presidential meeting, "Now is the time for South Korea and Japan to form an economic bloc."

Bloomberg evaluated that SK hynix's consideration of a plant in Japan is part of broader efforts to strengthen cooperation with Japanese customers and partners.

SK hynix holds approximately a 14% or greater stake in Japanese flash memory manufacturer Kioxia through a Bain Capital SPC.

SK hynix CEO Kwak Noh-jung stated last week, "We are carefully reviewing ways to jointly develop the NAND flash market with customers and partners."

Japan is home to a diverse range of SK hynix partners, spanning from unlisted companies like Namics to major semiconductor equipment giants such as Tokyo Electron, as well as key customers like Sony Group and Nintendo.

U.S. chipmaker Micron Technology also operates a plant in Hiroshima, western Japan.

The Japanese government has actively provided subsidies for expansion projects of foreign semiconductor manufacturers within Japan, such as Taiwan's TSMC.

SK hynix held a ground-breaking ceremony for its next-generation HBM advanced packaging plant (fab) in West Lafayette, Indiana, USA, on the 27th local time, and is also exploring additional measures for overseas market expansion.

Bloomberg reported that SK hynix is searching for semiconductor production bases worldwide to meet the explosive data storage demand of AI while responding to U.S. attempts to curb China's technological ambitions.

SK hynix also plans to invest 54 trillion won to expand its semiconductor production facilities in South Korea.

(Photo: Yonhap News)