May 09, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Samsung Display is considering a fresh investment worth US$2 billion in Vietnam to beef up production of organic light-emitting diode panels for smartphones, local news outlet Chosun Biz reported on Jan. 10.

The report said the display-making unit of Samsung Electronics is finalizing deal conditions, including tax benefits, with the provincial government of Tinh Bac Ninh in northern Vietnam. The final announcement is expected to be made within the first quarter. 

With the latest funding, Samsung Display’s investments in Vietnam this year will top US$6 billion.

Samsung Electronics operates two plants in Vietnam that produce almost 50 percent of its handsets sold globally. Its key suppliers, including Samsung Display, have also expanded their production capacity in the neighboring area.

Samsung Display, which dominates more than 90 percent of the global OLED market for mobile devices, is ramping up OLED production, largely buoyed by the planned adoption by Apple’s iPhone this year.

Apple is expected to adopt OLED for the first time for a bigger-screen version of its next iPhone, tentatively called iPhone 8. Samsung Display, the sole supplier, has inked a deal to supply an annual 100 million OLED panels from the second quarter of this year for three years.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)