"Samsung Tops Global Companies"… Texas Governor Visits Pyeongtaek Plant

Greg Abbott, the Governor of Texas, who visited Korea to encourage investments from companies in Texas, expressed special affection for Samsung Electronics, a long-time partner, and shared his expectations for future cooperation.

Greg Abbott, Governor of Texas, USA (left), visited Samsung Electronics Pyeongtaek Campus on the morning of the 9th and shook hands with Jeon Young-hyun (center), Vice Chairman and Head of Samsung Electronics DS Division. Nam Seok-woo, President of Manufacturing & Technology at Samsung Electronics DS Division (right), also attended the meeting. Photo by Texas State Provided [Image Source=Yonhap News]

According to industry sources on the 10th, Governor Abbott said at a press conference held the previous day at the Shilla Hotel Maronie Room in Jung-gu, Seoul, "All the businesses Samsung Electronics is currently engaged in align with Texas's vision," adding, "With Samsung Electronics, Texas has become the number one semiconductor producer in the United States."

Before the press conference, Governor Abbott visited Samsung Electronics' Pyeongtaek Campus the previous morning, touring semiconductor products and production lines made on-site. He also met with executives including Jeon Young-hyun, head of Samsung Electronics' DS Division. Abbott said, "The Pyeongtaek Campus was very impressive. Among the global companies' sites I have visited so far, Samsung might be the best," and added, "I have been in contact with Samsung executives for a long time, so now we are closer to friends than partners." He further stated, "During the meeting, I received detailed explanations about the operation direction of the factory (fab) in Texas."

Samsung Electronics has operated a semiconductor factory in Austin, Texas, for 27 years and is currently investing $17 billion (about 23.5 trillion KRW) to build another semiconductor factory in Taylor, Texas. Samsung also announced plans to invest more than $40 billion by 2030 to expand the size and investment scope of the Taylor factory. Governor Abbott said, "I heard that the new factory being built in Taylor will be used as a dedicated base for producing wafers that make artificial intelligence (AI) chips."

He also left open the possibility of cooperation with another Korean semiconductor company, SK Hynix. Abbott said, "I did not meet with SK Hynix officials during this visit," but added, "The door is always wide open. Considering the scale of support and policies in our state, I am confident SK Hynix will be attracted to Texas." SK Hynix is investing $3.87 billion (about 5.2 trillion KRW) to build a next-generation high-bandwidth memory (HBM) production plant in West Lafayette, Indiana, USA.

Texas is a "forward base" where about 200 Korean companies have established operations. It is recognized as an important hub for Korean companies aiming to enter the U.S. market. During this visit, Governor Abbott also met with executives of the SeAH Group and agreed to complete a steel manufacturing plant in Temple, announcing this at the press conference. SeAH Group plans to invest $100 million (about 13 billion KRW). Texas expects this to create around 100 jobs. Meanwhile, companies are closely monitoring the U.S. presidential election in November, anticipating that the industrial environment in Texas could change significantly depending on the election outcome. Regarding this, Governor Abbott emphasized, "The direction of the presidential election is still unknown," and stressed, "Regardless of the election, I can confidently say that Texas will remain the number one state for doing business afterward."

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