SK Hynix will invest 19 trillion Korean won (about $12.9 billion) to build a new advanced packaging plant in South Korea as the memory maker races to expand output for artificial intelligence-related demand, according to CNBC.
The facility will be built in Cheongju, a city where SK Hynix already has a significant manufacturing presence. The company said construction is scheduled to begin in April, with completion targeted for the end of 2027.
The new site will focus on advanced packaging, a process that combines multiple memory chips into a single, high-density unit. By integrating chips more tightly, advanced packaging can improve performance and energy efficiency while shrinking the overall footprint—an increasingly important requirement as AI systems push higher data throughput and power demands.
SK Hynix is among the world’s largest memory producers and is a leading supplier of high-bandwidth memory, or HBM, a specialized type of DRAM designed to move data faster by stacking memory and increasing bandwidth. HBM has become a critical component in many AI accelerators, including chips used in data centers, helping drive a wave of investment across the semiconductor supply chain.
The company’s expansion comes amid intensifying competition to secure enough HBM to support rapidly growing AI infrastructure. As demand rises, prices have strengthened and the category has become especially lucrative for major memory manufacturers.
Rival Samsung Electronics has also signaled plans to increase HBM production in recent months, highlighting how the AI cycle is reshaping capital spending priorities across the industry.
SK Hynix cited industry projections that the HBM market is expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 33% between 2025 and 2030, underscoring how quickly the segment is scaling.
At the same time, producing HBM is more complex than manufacturing conventional memory used in many consumer devices. As capacity shifts toward AI-focused products, supplies of standard memory have tightened, contributing to broader price increases and raising concerns about higher component costs for electronics makers.
Higher pricing has boosted profitability across the memory sector. Samsung said last week it expects operating profit for the December quarter to nearly triple from the same period a year earlier, benefiting from stronger pricing and a more favorable product mix.
CNBC also reported that SK Hynix has been considering a potential U.S. listing after a strong year for its shares in South Korea.
