Samsung is strengthening its international supplier network sustainment and trying to expand its manufacturing operations in more countries.
Earlier this week, Samsung’s Lu Thai Moon met with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chin to prepare for what comes next, according to Vietnamese media outlet Lao Dong.
Samsung Electronics is reportedly preparing to open a new R&D center in Hanoi in the fourth quarter of 2022 or early 2023 at the latest, with plans to start producing chips in Vietnam from mid-2023 and expand its parts production efforts in the country.
The Group is preparing for trial production conditions for semiconductor chip grid products, which will be mass produced at Samsung Electro-Mechanics’ Thai Nguyen plant in Vietnam in July 2023; it is expected to open an R&D center in Hanoi by the end of 2022 and early 2023, which is also the Group’s R&D center not only for Vietnam but also for Southeast Asia, and is currently about 85% complete.
South Korea is currently Vietnam’s third largest trading partner below China and the United States, and about 60 percent of Samsung’s smartphones are produced in the Vietnam base. As of June 2022, the group has invested more than $20 billion, about 28 times its initial commitment.
On top of that, Samsung Electronics will also build a new chip foundry in the United States, having recently applied for additional land for expansion. The company is said to want to triple its semiconductor chip production capacity by 2026.
Samsung plans to invest another $3.3 billion in South Korea, Lu said. “The group will also help 50 Vietnamese suppliers improve their competitiveness and promote cooperation with Vietnamese universities and research institutions.”
The Vietnamese government is committed to creating favorable conditions and improving the business environment for foreign investors such as Samsung, the prime minister said. He added: “The government will also actively deal with programs such as training and improving the quality of human resources proposed by Samsung in accordance with the Samsung Group’s needs.”
He asked that Samsung Electronics study and expand the production of semiconductors, one of its three pillars, in Vietnam. “Samsung is already doing efficient business in smartphones and home appliances. Semiconductor production will form a closed chain for electronics production in Vietnam.”
In the first half of 2022, Samsung Vietnam’s export revenue was $34.3 billion, up 18 percent from the same period last year. The group aims to achieve an export turnover of $69 billion this year, equivalent to 20.5 percent of the value of Vietnam’s merchandise exports last year ($336.31 billion).
