Korea, U.S. trade honchos meet to celebrate FTA's 10th

Industry

Published: 17 Mar. 2022, 15:47

Korea, U.S. trade honchos meet to celebrate FTA's 10th

Yeo Han-koo, Korea's Minister for Trade (left) tours around SK siltron css's plant in Auburn, Michigan with United States Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai as a part of a celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Korean and U.S. trade ministers agreed to cooperate on stabilizing supply chains for key products such as semiconductors and batteries.

Yeo Han-koo, Korea's Minister for Trade, met with United States Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai at SK siltron css's plant in Auburn, Michigan, as a part of a celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement, which was on March 15.

SK E&S Vice Chairman Yu Jeong-joon, SK siltron CEO Jang Yong-ho and SK siltron css CEO Jianwei Dong were also present.

According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Yeo and Tai agreed to reinforce the two countries’ investment and fortify economic security for essential products, especially chips and batteries.

“Our priority will be in strengthening the supply chains for semiconductors, batteries, electric vehicles [EV], biohealth, energy, raw materials and rare metals, especially as the global trade environment goes through rapid change,” Yeo said.

This is the first time Korean and U.S. trade ministers visited a manufacturing plant run by a Korean company together.

SK siltron css was recommended as the meeting place by the USTR because it symbolizes the success of the 10-year-old Korea-U.S. FTA, according to the trade ministry.

SK siltron css — short for compound semiconductor solutions — is a subsidiary of semiconductor wafer manufacturer SK siltron that specializes in making silicon carbide (SiC) wafers based in the United States.

The company was founded in 2020 after SK siltron bought DuPont’s CSS business for $450 million. It is currently the No. 3 provider of SiC wafers in the world, following Cree’s Wolfspeed and II-VI.

SiC wafers make chips that are lighter, smaller and more efficient than chips from silicon wafers. EVs with SiC wafer chips can run 7.5 percent longer and charge 75 percent faster than those with silicon wafer chips, according to SK siltron.

SK siltron css announced it will invest $300 million to build an additional production line in Bay City, Michigan, over the next three years. It will also hire 150 more employees, the company said.

“In the 10 years since Korus was signed, the trade relationship between the United States and Korea has flourished,” Tai said. “Beyond increased exports, the agreement has also strengthened the investment ties between our two countries, but we have much further to go to build on our progress and expand opportunities for American businesses in Korea."

Yeo will visit New York Friday and meet with the Council on Foreign Relations, the Korea Society and Gary Cohn, Vice President of IBM. He will also meet with officials from semiconductor equipment manufacturer Axcelis to discuss the company's investment in Korea.

BY YOON SO-YEON [yoon.soyeon@joongang.co.kr]