SK Group, the second-largest conglomerate in South Korea, said on Tuesday that it would invest an additional $22 billion in semiconductors and other cutting-edge industries in the United States.
The plan was unveiled following a virtual meeting between S.K. Group chairman Chey Tae-won and U.S. President Joe Biden, who was quarantining in the White House with COVID-19.
Biden said the investment is “consequential” to both SK Group and the United States as it would expand the company’s workforce to 20,000 workers by 2025 while funding a range of U.S. advanced technologies.
“This pathbreaking announcement represents clear evidence that the United States, [South Korea], and its allies are back and winning the technology competition of the 21st century,” he was quoted as saying by the White House.
SK Group’s investments will include $15 billion in the semiconductor industry through research and development programs, as well as materials and a testing and packaging facility, which will help address supply chain problems, the company said in a statement.
Another $5 billion will go to green energy businesses, including electric vehicle charging stations, green hydrogen production, battery materials, and recycling.
The final batch, which the company described as worth “several billions of dollars,” would go towards biotechnologies developing new drugs designed to bolster competitiveness in the U.S. pharmaceutical industry.
Investing Near $30 Billion
Chey told Biden that SK Group will invest “nearly $30 billion going forward” following its previous announcement of a $7 billion investment in new facilities in Tennessee and Kentucky as part of its joint venture with Ford Motor.
“In the past, these kinds of technology investments went to China. Today, under my administration, these technology investments are coming to the United States,” Biden said.
Biden further stated that about 613,000 manufacturing jobs had been created in the U.S. since he took office, and construction of overall manufacturing facilities in America have increased by 116 percent.
US-South Korea Relations
The announced investment is part of the Biden administration’s efforts to reduce the impact of supply chain bottlenecks around the globe, which the administration says are helping fuel record-high inflation.
During his visit to South Korea in May, Biden met with South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol to deepen the two countries’ strategic economic and technology partnership as well as energy security.
The two leaders agreed to “protect and promote critical and emerging technologies, including leading-edge semiconductors, eco-friendly EV batteries, Artificial Intelligence, quantum technology, biotechnology, biomanufacturing, and autonomous robotics,” the U.S.-South Korea joint statement reads.
As part of the economic partnership, South Korea formally announced participation in the U.S.-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), a framework outlining the United States’ key priorities to align with allies and partners to compete more effectively with communist China in the race to lead global technology development and norms.
Lisa Bian and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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