SK Hynix Plans First U.S. Memory Chip Production, in Talks with Intel on Ohio Collaboration
nashnova research
SK Hynix is in early talks with Intel to produce memory chips at Intel's Ohio facilities — a deal that would mark SK Hynix's first-ever U.S. manufacturing. This means → the geography of global memory-chip supply could shift structurally, but South Korean government review and high costs stand as twin hurdles.
What shape could this deal take?
Reuters, citing three people familiar with the matter, reports that talks are still at the exploratory stage with no decisions made.
Two possible paths are on the table: SK Hynix leases part of Intel's Ohio fab capacity, or SK Hynix, Intel, and several major cloud-computing companies form a joint venture to secure memory-chip supply.
SK Hynix said it is evaluating "various measures including establishing additional production bases"; Intel declined to comment on "market speculation" but said it continues to advance its Ohio investment preparations.
Why could Seoul block this?
All three sources identified potential opposition from the South Korean government as the deal's biggest obstacle.
If the partnership involves HBM — high-bandwidth memory, a core component of AI chips — or advanced DRAM, it could trigger a "national core technology" review under South Korea's Industrial Technology Protection Act. This means → the companies cannot simply decide to go; the government has the power to stop them.
Seoul has separately urged SK Hynix and Samsung to accelerate a new chip-manufacturing cluster in southwestern South Korea, a priority that sits in direct tension with building in the U.S.
Why is building in the U.S. so expensive?
Two people familiar with the matter said semiconductor manufacturing in the U.S. costs far more than in South Korea, driven by higher labor and construction costs and the fact that most of the chip supply chain sits in Asia.
In plain terms = workers cost more, construction costs more, and components still have to be shipped from Asia — a triple cost stack.
Despite this, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won said in July that the company faces intense pressure from customers and governments to supply more chips: "I think we need to build in the U.S." SK Hynix currently has only one U.S. facility — a packaging plant under construction in Indiana.
What does Intel get out of this?
Intel announced in 2022 that it would invest up to $100 billion in Ohio to build what could be the world's largest chip-manufacturing complex, but completion of its two fabs has slipped to 2030 and 2031 respectively.
This means → Intel's Ohio plan is under heavy financial and timeline pressure — the company is now partially owned by the U.S. government. A partnership with SK Hynix would ease some of that burden.
SK Hynix completed a secondary listing on Nasdaq in July, a move that reflects its accelerating integration into U.S. capital markets.
How does the Washington–Seoul tug-of-war play out?
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has threatened tariffs of up to 100% on South Korean and Taiwanese companies unless they commit to expanding production in the U.S.
In plain terms = Washington's message is "build here or pay heavy duties" — one of the direct sources of pressure pushing SK Hynix stateside.
Whether these talks can find a balance between Washington and Seoul is the key point to watch. South Korea wants to keep its core technology at home but cannot afford to alienate its largest chip-customer base — a tension with no easy exit.
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