Samsung to Invest JPY 40B to Setup Chip Packaging Plant in Japan

Samsung Electronics plans to invest about 40 billion yen ($280 million) over five years to establish an advanced chip storage research center in Japan, according to an announcement from the city of Yokohama. Reuters reported in March that Samsung plans to set up a factory in Kanagawa Prefecture, where it has an R&D center, to strengthen ties with Japanese manufacturers and chipmakers.

The investment comes as tensions between South Korea and Japan ease as the United States urges its allies to cooperate against China and its growing technological capabilities. Companies are racing to develop integrated chip technologies that combine components in a single package to improve chip performance.

The Japanese facility will allow Samsung to strengthen its leadership in chips and partner with packaging-related companies based in Yokohama, the head of Samsung's chip business, Kyung Kye-hyun, said in the city's announcement.

Notable Samsung industrial affiliates include Samsung Electronics (the world's largest information technology company, consumer electronics maker and chipmaker measured by 2017 revenues), Samsung Heavy Industries (the world's second-largest shipbuilder measured by 2010 revenues), and Samsung Engineering and Samsung C&T Corporation (respectively the world's 13th and 36th largest construction companies).