Solidigm weighing first U.S. NAND fab — upstate NY
Reuters: SK Hynix's Solidigm considering a U.S. NAND flash fab with upstate New York leading; separate from Hynix–Intel Ohio memory talks; no plan set.
Opening
SK Hynix's U.S. NAND unit Solidigm is considering its first U.S. NAND flash mass-production fab, with upstate New York a leading site candidate. Reuters (Hyunjoo Jin, Heekyong Yang, Karen Freifeld), citing three people familiar, says the project would be separate from SK Hynix's talks with Intel to make memory at Intel's Ohio facility. SK Hynix said Solidigm is "reviewing various options to strengthen its business competitiveness, but no specific plans have been confirmed." No agreement on investment details yet, one source cautioned. A U.S. plant would reduce reliance on Solidigm's sole NAND fab in Dalian, China, and help versus tariffs / equipment-export risk (Reuters analysis via sources).
The numbers
Solidigm acquired from Intel for $9B in 2020 — Reuters.
Pre-IPO fundraising talk 5 trillion won ($3.6B) — media reports last month; Hynix said no decisions (Reuters).
SK Hynix shares +6.4% vs KOSPI +2.7% on the session — Reuters.
Why it matters
Adds a NAND onshore path alongside the already-archived Hynix–Intel Ohio / JV framing — still talks, not a committed fab schedule. Same day Reuters notes CXMT planning a Beijing NAND R&D production line. Seoul politics: President Lee called U.S. pressure on Korean chipmakers' factory plans "a matter of controversy"; Lutnick tariff threat up to 100% cited as context (Reuters).
Positioning
HBM supply binds — This is NAND (Solidigm), not an HBM wafer commitment; relevant as U.S. memory footprint and customer LTA politics, not near-term HBM bit relief.
Connects to
Hynix–Intel U.S. memory talks — Explicitly separate Ohio lease/JV track (news). U.S. chip labor shortage — Any new U.S. fab would hit the same skilled-labor constraint already documented (news).
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