Samsung's semiconductor facility in Texas faces delays into 2026 through lack of customers

Samsung Electronics is delaying the completion of its new semiconductor factory in Taylor, Texas, as the company continues to struggle to find customers to use its new chip-making plant on US soil.

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The South Korean company will be spending over $37 billion on its semiconductor plant in Texas in the years to come, after Samsung was awarded up to $4.7 billion of funding from the Biden administration and the CHIPS Act. The investment included a fab in Taylor, Texas, which was meant to make cutting-edge chips and be online by 2024... now that has been pushed back until 2026.

A source close to the situation told Nikkei Asia: "The process (of completing the Taylor fab) is delayed because there are no customers. (Samsung) is not in a situation where it can do something, even if it brings equipment in at the moment".

A chip supply chain executive that's also familiar with the matter told Nikkei Asia that Samsung, which is already making chips at its Austin, Texas-based semiconductor fab, is in no rush to install chip-making equipment at its Taylor-based plant. This source added: "Local demand for chips isn't particularly strong, and the process nodes Samsung planned several years ago no longer meet with current customer needs. However, overhauling the plant would be a major and costly undertaking, so the company is adopting a wait-and-see approach for now".