WASHINGTON (AP) — South Korea’s SK Group announced plans Tuesday to invest $22 billion in the United States in industries including semiconductors, green energy and bioscience, which the White House says will create tens of thousands of domestic jobs and help facilitate the global supply chain. grunting that has persisted during the coronavirus pandemic.
President Joe Biden, who remains isolated in the White House residence after testing positive for COVID-19 last week, he met with SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won virtually, calling it a “historic and groundbreaking announcement.”
It is “proof that we are meeting the climate crisis emergency with urgency, opportunity and innovation to save the planet and create good-paying jobs,” Biden said.
SK Group’s investments will include $15 billion in the semiconductor industry through research and development programs, as well as materials and a testing and packaging facility, which will help address supply chain issues, the conglomerate said. it’s a statement.
Another $5 billion will go to green energy businesses, including electric vehicle charging stations, green hydrogen production and battery materials and recycling, SK Group said. The final batch, which the company described as worth “several billion dollars,” would go to biotechnologies developing new drugs designed to boost competitiveness in the US pharmaceutical industry.
“In the past, these types of technology investments have gone to China,” Biden said. “Today, and in my administration, these types of technology investments are coming to the United States.”
SK Group had previously said it would invest $7 billion in new facilities that produce batteries for electric vehicles in Tennessee and Kentucky, as part of a joint venture with Ford Motor Co.
Last year, there was $333.6 billion in foreign investment in the US, the highest on record since 2016 and a 73% increase from 2020, the White House said in a statement.
The announced investment is part of the Biden administration’s efforts to reduce the impact of supply chain bottlenecks around the world, which the administration says are helping to drive record inflation. The White House is also advocating a proposal advances in Congress designed to boost the computer chip industry and high-tech research in the United States.
During a virtual meeting with industry and union leaders on Monday, Biden called semiconductors “the building blocks of the modern economy”.