Biden to visit SK siltron plant in Bay City, Michigan

SK siltron's manufacturing facility in Korea [YONHAP]

U.S. President Joe Biden is scheduled to visit an SK siltron plant in Michigan.

The president will deliver a speech at the production site in Bay City, Michigan, on Nov. 29, according to the White House.

"The President will visit a new manufacturing facility recently opened by SK siltron, which last year announced a $300 million expansion of its Michigan operations,” Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters during a briefing.

“During his remarks, President Biden will highlight his economic plan,” she said.

The company announced its plan last year to invest $300 million and create up to 150 jobs in Bay City over the next three years to manufacture and research advanced materials for electric vehicles.

Its U.S. facilities produce wafers made of silicon carbide. Compared with chips made up entirely of silicon, silicon carbide-based semiconductors deliver superior power switch technology in harsh environments such as in hot temperatures or when dealing with high voltages, making them ideal for the use in electric vehicles.

SK siltron runs its U.S. business through its SK siltron CSS subsidiary. The wafer maker went on to expand after acquiring DuPont’s wafer unit for $450 million in 2020.

The company plans to spend 2.3 trillion won ($1.7 billion) to increase its wafer production capacity ten times by 2025.

In a video call with Biden in July, SK Chairman Chey Tae-won committed $22 billion into manufacturing advanced memory chips, electric vehicle batteries and biopharmaceuticals in the United States through 2025.

BY PARK EUN-JEE [park.eunjee@joongang.co.kr]