Hynix Semiconductor Inc. will spend $250 million to upgrade its Eugene, Oregon-based DRAM plant and add 100 employees in preparation for the possible addition of a new product line next year.
This factory is the South Korean memory manufacturer's only U.S. plant and is the city's largest commercial employer, with 1,500 workers and a $64 million annual payroll.
This new investment is expected to position the plant to begin manufacturing flash memory for digital cameras, iPods and other personal media players, according to Bobby Lee, a Hynix spokesperson in the report.
However, Hynix has not yet decided to take that step until the memory-chip market is evaluated next year and will delay a decision until then, Lee also said. Either way, that decision will not impact the staffing additions just announced.
Hynix said it selected Oregon for the new investment over plants in South Korea and China, assisted in part by Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski personally lobbying Hynix CEO Eui Jei Woo at Hynix's corporate headquarters during a trade visit in June that helped secure the expansion.
Kulongoski had emphasized Oregon's advantageous location on the Pacific Rim, its educated work force and Hynix's existing investment in the facility, but did not offer tax breaks, according to Lonn Hoklin, Kulongoski's communications director.
Hynix's said its $1.4 billion Eugene plant opened in 1998 and generated revenues of $420 million last year, the report concluded.
In its most recent financials, Q2 ended June 30, Hynix reported revenues were 15 percent sequentially higher, and 31 percent higher year-over-year.
Hynix could not be reached for further comment.
- Electronic News
