Samsung adjusts operations at its Xi’an chip plant amid spread of COVID-19

Samsung’s chip factory in Xi’an, China saw disruptions in production as the city is under a strict lockdown due to the spread of COVID-19.

Samsung Newsroom said on Wednesday that the company has decided to temporarily adjust operations at its manufacturing facilities in Xi’an, China due to the ongoing COVID-19 situation. The adjustment of operations means reducing chip production than usual. “The decision was made in accordance with our commitment to protecting the health and safety of our employees and partners, which remains our top priority,” added Samsung Electronics.

China locked down 13 million people in Xi’an, Shaanxi province after the city recorded 206 new COVID-19 cases between Dec. 9 and Dec. 22. This is because Chinese authorities are placing a lockdown and isolating all residents if there is one confirmed COVID-19 case in the region. Samsung Electronics has been operating its production facilities normally under special measures from the Chinese government. However, the South Korean IT giant had to adjust its operations there as employees’ commuting efforts and logistics faced disruptions due to a prolonged lockdown.

The chip plant in Xi’an is Samsun Electronics’ only overseas memory chip plant and has been producing NAND flash memory chips since 2014. NAND flash is used not only for data storage but also for manufacturing solid state drives (SSD) required for data storage in servers and PCs. Samsung Electronics has almost 40% share of the global NAND flash market and the Xi’an plant accounts for over 40% of the company’s total NAND flash production.


Hyung-Seok Seo skytree08@donga.com