Possibility of Lee Jae-yong Attending Groundbreaking Ceremony of Taylor Foundry Plant in the US in September... Business Community Interest

Group's Core Business: Vice Chairman Lee Likely to Attend
Chip4 Semiconductor Collaboration and 450 Trillion Investment
80,000 Jobs and Support for Busan Expo Among Numerous Pending Issues

Lee Jae-yong, Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics, shaking hands with U.S. President Joe Biden, who visited Korea for the first time since his inauguration in May. (Image source=Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] There is speculation that the next move of Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, who visited the Giheung semiconductor research and development (R&D) site immediately after being reinstated by the Liberation Day special pardon, will be a trip to the United States. This comes as there is a possibility that he will attend the groundbreaking ceremony for Samsung Electronics' second foundry plant scheduled in Taylor, Texas.

According to business circles on the 24th, the groundbreaking ceremony for Samsung Electronics' second plant under construction in Taylor, USA, is expected to be held as early as next month. Preparations for the ceremony have been completed, and only administrative procedures remain. Since the smooth landing of the U.S. foundry facility is one of the group's core businesses, it is widely expected that Vice Chairman Lee will attend the groundbreaking ceremony.

Vice Chairman Lee currently attends court once a week due to trials related to Samsung C&T's accounting fraud and Samsung Biologics' unfair merger allegations. However, no trials are scheduled during the Chuseok holiday next month. Since he could travel during this period, there is speculation that the groundbreaking ceremony could be held next month to align with his schedule.

Samsung Electronics will hold a 'Taylor Construction Site Job Fair' in Taylor, Texas, USA, from the 31st of this month to the 1st of next month to secure construction personnel before the groundbreaking. It is generally known that about 20,000 to 25,000 people, including temporary workers, are needed to build one production line of a factory.

If Vice Chairman Lee goes to the U.S., a hectic schedule is expected. Since the government has announced participation in the Chip4 (Korea, U.S., Japan, Taiwan) preliminary meeting, attention is focused on Vice Chairman Lee's voice, which is necessary to resolve pressing issues such as semiconductor supply chain restructuring and semiconductor collaboration with the U.S. Recently, Samsung Electronics' DS (semiconductor) division has been actively working on risk management through smooth networking with local governments by recruiting Kwon Hyuk-woo, former Director of the U.S. Trade Department at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, as an executive in charge of government relations. It is reported that they have already started reinforcing local government relations personnel.

Timing is also crucial. According to Taiwanese media Digitimes and several foreign news outlets the day before, Taiwan's TSMC is expected to start mass production of 3nm (nanometer; 1nm is one-billionth of a meter) chips from September and has secured Apple, a big tech company, as its first customer. It is anticipated that TSMC's 3nm chips will be applied to the M2 Pro chip, which will be released from the end of this year to the first half of next year. The M2 Pro chip is expected to be installed in Apple's flagship products such as the 14- and 16-inch MacBook Pro and the high-end Mac Mini. This means Samsung has no time to lose.

The fact that Vice Chairman Lee's role is not limited to managing semiconductor business amplifies interest in his 'speed race.' There are still pending issues to resolve even after inspecting the foundry plant in Taylor, USA. It is a matter of interest whether the smooth execution of the announced 450 trillion won investment over five years and the creation of 80,000 new jobs can be achieved in terms of national economic contribution.

It is also well known that the group is making every effort to support the Yoon Suk-yeol administration's push to host the 2030 Busan World Expo. There are continuous rumors about his promotion to chairman and appointment as a registered executive to strengthen leadership within the group. This is not just a personal matter for Vice Chairman Lee but involves restoring the control tower organization necessary to accelerate management decisions such as large-scale mergers and acquisitions (M&A), restructuring the owner's governance to support this, and the year-end executive meeting?all interconnected. This is also why Samsung and the business community have paid close attention to Vice Chairman Lee's reinstatement.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.