Discussions between Intel and SK Hynix over the chipmaker’s long-stalled $28B Ohio campus are focused on an operating partnership rather than an outright sale, according to Semafor. Sources familiar with the matter say SK Hynix is among the candidates Intel is evaluating to help run the New Albany facility, though no formal negotiations have begun and the memory maker has publicly denied acquisition talks.
SK Hynix told the Korea Exchange on July 22 that it had “neither pursued nor decided on” buying Intel’s Ohio site, while noting it continues to review investment and acquisition opportunities across the board. The denial followed a Korean media report that the two companies were discussing a full sale — a scenario the market chatter had already cast doubt on given the site’s scale and Intel’s stated intent to keep its foundry strategy alive.
Intel broke ground on the Ohio project in 2022, planning two fabs on a campus designed to eventually accommodate up to eight. After missing its original 2025 opening window and enacting significant layoffs, the company pushed its first Ohio fab launch to 2030. The site is expected to host Intel’s 14A and future process nodes, making it a long-term strategic asset rather than one the company plans to offload.
The operating-partner model has precedent at Intel. In 2022, the company launched a Semiconductor Co-Investment Program with Brookfield Infrastructure, pooling up to $30B for Intel’s Arizona Ocotillo campus while Intel retained 51% ownership and operational control. Analysts see a similar structure as the most likely path for Ohio, letting Intel keep the facility on its books while sharing the enormous capital burden of bringing a greenfield megafab online.
For SK Hynix, the Ohio talks sit alongside a broader US manufacturing push. The company is investing nearly $4B in an HBM advanced packaging facility in West Lafayette, Indiana, targeting full operations in the second half of 2028. Beyond fab operations, Economy Tribune reports the two chipmakers could explore technology collaborations similar to SK Hynix’s HBM-and-advanced-packaging partnership with TSMC, with SK Hynix already testing integration of its HBM with Intel’s EMIB-based 2.5D packaging technology. Samsung and Micron are reportedly evaluating EMIB compatibility as well, as memory makers seek alternatives to TSMC’s tight CoWoS capacity.
