Samsung Electronics Co Ltd is considering Austin, Texas, as one of the sites for a new $17 billion chip plant that the South Korean firm said could create 1,800 jobs, according to documents filed with Texas state officials.
The tech giant is seeking combined tax abatements of $805.5 million over 20 years from Travis County and the city of Austin, among other tax breaks, according to the documents.
Samsung said in its filings that if Austin is selected, the company would break ground on the site in the second quarter of this year and that the plant will become operational in the third quarter of 2023.
“This project is highly competitive, and the company is looking at alternative sites in the US including Arizona and New York, as well as abroad in Korea.,” Samsung said in the documents, adding that it is taking into account access to talent, chip ecosystem and speed to market in its evaluation of the sites.
Samsung’s American customers for its contract manufacturing chip business include Tesla Inc, Qualcomm Inc, and Nvidia.
Samsung’s filing said it plans to make “advanced logic devices,” meaning it would aim to make the smallest, fastest kinds of computing chips for customers. The company has an existing chip plant in Austin that makes computing chips. In a statement to Reuters, Samsung confirmed it is considering expanding its chip facilities, but no decision has been made yet.