Shares of SK Hynix Inc. (NASDAQ: SKHY) rose 3.5% to $181.00 in premarket trading on Thursday, recovering losses from the previous session. The move followed reports that the company is in early talks with Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) regarding manufacturing memory chips on U.S. soil.
According to a report by Reuters citing three sources familiar with the discussions, two potential structures are being considered. The first involves SK Hynix leasing part of Intel’s long-delayed Ohio chipmaking complex. The second option is the formation of a joint venture with Intel and major cloud computing firms to secure supply of increasingly scarce memory. Neither company has confirmed a deal.
SK Hynix stated that it is "exploring various options to strengthen its global competitiveness" and noted that nothing has been finalized. Intel declined to comment on the speculation but restated its commitment to preparing the Ohio site.
The Ohio project was originally announced as the world’s largest chipmaking complex, with fabrication scheduled to begin in 2025. However, the timeline has since slipped to 2030 and 2031, leaving billions in committed capital idle. Intel’s foundry division has faced a shortage of customers, and a tenant filling Ohio capacity would generate revenue for the company.
SK Hynix currently leads the market in high-bandwidth memory, with revenue over the past 12 months up 145% and net income up 461%. The company is also building a $4 billion plant in West Lafayette, Indiana, for the assembly of high-bandwidth memory.
Analysts note that fabricating advanced memory in the United States is more expensive due to labor, construction, and local supplier costs. Additionally, advanced memory can be classified as national core technology in South Korea, which triggers a government review of any transfer abroad.
Should SK Hynix fabricate memory on American soil, the domestic advantage for Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU)—the only large memory maker headquartered in the United States—would narrow. Micron shares rose premarket alongside SanDisk Corp. (NASDAQ: SNDK), extending a rebound in memory stocks.
