Samsung to build new foundry line in South Korea

Samsung Electronics has begun construction of a new foundry line at its plant in Pyeongtaek, South Korea, the company announced Thursday.

The line will produce chips using extreme ultraviolet (EUV)-based 5-nanometer (nm) process, the company said, and will began operations in the second half of 2021.

Samsung first applied EUV into contract-chip making at its factory line in Hwaseong last year. The S3 line produces 7nm chips with EUV for clients.

The South Korean behemoth also began operations of its new V1 line, also at the Hwaseong plant, earlier this year, which is dedicated to EUV and also produces chips for customers.

The Pyeongtaek line also produce memory chips and Samsung has earlier said it has applied EUV in DRAM production there.

Samsung and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) are the only two foundry firms that have applied 7nm or smaller process.

According to market research firm TrendForce, TSMC controlled 54.1% of the global foundry market, followed by Samsung’s 15.9%, as of the first quarter of the year.