Samsung Elec to invest $3.1 bn in S.Korean OLED plant

Samsung Electronics Co., the world’s largest smartphone maker, is set to spend 4.1 trillion won ($3.1 billion) on a new organic light-emitting diode (OLED) production line in South Korea to maintain its lead amid growing competition against Chinese rivals.

Samsung Electronics announced on Tuesday a plan to invest the money in a production line of Gen 8.6 OLED panels for tablets and laptops by 2026 at a manufacturing complex of its subsidiary Samsung Display Co.

The investment is expected to more than double Samsung Display’s annual output of OLED panels for tablet PCs to 10 million units from the current 4.5 million.

“We will secure the world’s largest production capacity for laptop panels in addition to smartphone OLED panels,” said a Samsung official.

Samsung aims to check BOE Technology Group Co., China’s top display maker, which is trying to expand its presence in the global OLED market. Beijing also aims to make the mainland the global display center with major local manufacturers.

Countries across the world are fiercely competing to attract high-tech industrial plants including to manufacture displays. The US is aiming to secure electric vehicle and battery factories with the Inflation Reduction Act.

GOVERNMENT TO SUPPORT

Samsung Display predicted the new production line would raise suppliers' sales by some 2.8 trillion won and create some 26,000 jobs.

South Korea pledged to back the new investment.

“We will help (them) maintain the No. 1 position in the display market by increasing incentives for corporate investment and supporting research and development,” South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said at a signing ceremony for Samsung’s investment.

The government last month unveiled measures to support the implementation of 550 trillion won in private investments for six high-tech industries – semiconductors, displays, secondary batteries, bio, future vehicles and robots.

Samsung said those measures were part of its investment decision.

The company pledged to develop Asan, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of Seoul where Samsung Display is operating a display production complex, and surrounding areas as the world’s top display cluster in cooperation with suppliers, local colleges and research centers there.

Samsung last month said it will invest 60.1 trillion won in non-capital areas over the next 10 years.

Write to Jeong-Soo Hwang, Byung-Uk Do, Han-Shin Park and Ik-Hwan Kim at hjs@hankyung.com
 
Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.