Samsung to build 'mega' chip cluster near Seoul, sets aside $230 billion

Samsung Electronics said on Wednesday it expects to invest 300 trillion won (USD 230 billion) over the next 20 years as part of an ambitious South Korean national project to build the world's largest semiconductor manufacturing base near the capital, Seoul.

The chip-making mega cluster, which will be established in Gyeonggi Province by 2042, will be anchored by five new semiconductor plants built by Samsung.

It will aim to attract 150 other companies producing materials and components or designing high-tech chips, according to South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

Samsung's new plants will be located near its existing domestic factories and will produce both computer memory chips used for storing data and higher-margin logic chips designed to perform a broader range of functions, the company said.

A giant in the global memory business, Samsung is trying to expand its presence in advanced chips, anticipating that demand will soar in coming years with the adoption of