SK Hynix has confirmed that it has announced plans to double its DRAM wafer production capacity to its major partners between 2030 and 2031.

This is a medium - to long-term expansion plan that was already in place before Nvidia CEO Huang Renxun wrote 'please produce more' on SK Hynix DRAM wafers at the Taipei International Computer Show.

According to industry insiders on the 5th, SK Hynix's procurement department and Longin Semiconductor cluster manager have been reporting to major suppliers in the past two months that they plan to expand production by 2030 based on wafer investment.
The core of this plan is to increase the monthly production capacity of DRAM wafers from the current 550000 to approximately 1 million by 2030. The production capacity of 550000 pieces includes the output of the Wuxi factory in China (approximately 200000 pieces). This expansion will focus on the Longren Semiconductor Industry Cluster. SK Hynix has divided its Longin Phase I factory into six clean rooms and will begin installing equipment in the first clean room (Phase I) in February 2027. We plan to increase the production capacity by 60000 pieces after the equipment installation is completed, and then gradually increase the production capacity by adding 60000 pieces every six months in the next cleanroom. If carried out according to this plan, by the first half of 2030, the Longren Phase I factory alone will add 360000 pieces of DRAM monthly production capacity.
In addition, the M15X wafer fab in Qingzhou is currently undergoing expansion. M15X will be put into production in the second half of this year, with a monthly production capacity of 40000 wafers. Next year, its monthly production capacity will reach about 80000 wafers. With the addition of 360000 wafers from the Longren wafer fab and an additional 80000 wafers from the M15X expansion, SK Hynix's monthly DRAM wafer production capacity is expected to reach approximately 1 million wafers by 2030 or 2031.
SK Hynix announced in February last year that the first phase of its Longin factory investment plan would include two structural frameworks and six clean rooms. The delivery time of the first batch of equipment has been advanced from May 2027 to February. Although the company has disclosed the investment amount and building structure, this is the first time that the specific production products, expansion scale, and speed of each cleanroom have been disclosed. According to the current plan, all newly added production capacity will be DRAM. It is reported that the company plans to mainly promote the technological upgrade of NAND flash memory, such as increasing the number of flash layers.
A device industry official explained, "Isn't this telling us to be prepared because they will rapidly and significantly expand
According to reports, SK Group Chairman Choi Tae won stated at the 2026 Taipei International Computer Show that he will "double the total wafer production capacity at full speed within five years," which is in line with the plan.
However, due to the overly aggressive nature of the plan, partner companies are cautiously monitoring its implementation. In 2022, SK Hynix released its capital investment guidelines for the next year to its partners, and subsequently informed them that they would significantly reduce their order volume in the autumn of that year. Some partners who purchased components according to the guidelines have had a direct impact on their cash flow. In addition, completing the construction progress of a clean room every six months means that even a delay in the delivery of just one type of equipment may disrupt the entire schedule.
An official from a cooperating company said, "In the short term, increasing investment will definitely bring huge benefits to the equipment and materials industry." However, he cautiously added, "Only with market demand support can the entire plan be realized
However, many people believe that this expansion plan carries more weight than before, given that the chairman of the group has personally revealed the overall blueprint.
Previously, President Cui stated at the Taipei International Computer Show that "sudden price increases or spikes can harm overall sustainability," and added, "Sustainability is crucial for the entire ecosystem." This statement was interpreted as a declaration of his determination to continue advancing expansion plans without being affected by short-term price fluctuations.
SK Group Chairman Choi Tae won stated that he will double SK Hynix's wafer production capacity within five years.
On the 2nd (local time), Chairman Cui met with reporters at the "Computex 2026" SK Hynix exhibition hall in Taipei, Taiwan, and stated, "We will double our total wafer production capacity at full speed within the next five years
President Cui also maintained his previous prediction that the memory shortage will continue until 2030. He said, "With the growth of KV cache demand, memory demand will explode, and every company is expanding their artificial intelligence data centers. "He also added, 'Nvidia's new AI PC (based on RTX Spark) released yesterday also requires a significant amount of memory.'. "
President Cui explained, "Nowadays, building a wafer fab takes at least three years, and if we start from scratch, it takes more than five years." He added, "There are bottlenecks in all aspects, not only in terms of funding, graphics processing units (GPUs), and memory, but also in terms of energy, water, and equipment. "
Regarding the scale of capital investment, he said, "We will not set a fixed amount in advance." He added, "Due to the rising costs of equipment, buildings, land, and electricity, it is difficult to predict." He also stated, "We will spare no effort in investing and producing the products that our customers need
Regarding HBM business, he stated, 'Our roadmap is when the customer is ready,' and added, 'Currently, only one customer (Nvidia) has requested HBM4E.'. "This statement seems to be a response to Samsung Electronics' previous announcement of the "first batch of HBM4E sample shipments in the industry". This indirectly emphasizes that acquiring actual customers is the key, rather than seizing the sample market.
As Nvidia's next-generation platform Vera Rubin enters mass production, SK Hynix responds cautiously to the question of whether it can continue to maintain its position as the world's top HBM supplier. Chairman Chey said, "I hope so." He added, "The ultimate decision-making power lies with the customer, but we have always been a key supplier and hope to continue to maintain this position
Regarding the prospect of memory prices, President Cui stated, "Prices will follow the supply and demand relationship, but a sudden surge in prices will actually harm the healthy development of the ecosystem." He added, "The sustainability of the entire ecosystem is necessary
He described his relationship with Nvidia CEO Huang Renxun as a 'trust based friendship'. He said, "I cannot disclose the specific details of our conversation, but this partnership will continue for a long time
On that day, Nvidia CEO Huang Renxun personally visited the booth of SK Hynix. This is the second consecutive day that Huang Renxun has met with SK Hynix executives. The day before, he had met with SK Hynix Chairman Choi Chi yuen and then had dinner with a Korean company. Huang Renxun left a message and signature saying 'Please produce more' on a HBM4E wafer displayed at the booth.
The next generation LPDDR memory module SOCAMM2 has the words "Love SOCAMM" printed on its booth. In the context of sustained shortage of memory supply, this is equivalent to the biggest customer publicly demanding top suppliers to increase production. The SOCAMM2 logo is interpreted as a strong interest in adopting next-generation memory.