SK Hynix is in talks with Intel to manufacture its memory chips in the United States for the first time, Reuters reported on Wednesday, sending shares of both companies higher in premarket trading. Intel rose 3.2% while SK Hynix’s Nasdaq-listed shares were 2.6% higher.
Under one scenario, SK Hynix would lease part of Intel’s chipmaking facility in Ohio. Intel and SK Hynix could also form a joint venture involving major cloud firms, or structure the deal in other ways. The talks are exploratory and no decisions have been made, one source told Reuters.
A deal would be a win for Intel, which has sought marquee customers for its manufacturing, or foundry, business. The arrangement could also advance U.S. efforts to bring more semiconductor production onshore.
SK Hynix is one of the world’s leading suppliers of high-bandwidth memory, a key component of Nvidia’s chips, and produces other memory used in artificial intelligence applications. A deal to make advanced memory such as HBM in the U.S. could face opposition from the South Korean government, Reuters reported, citing three sources.
SK Hynix listed American depositary receipts on the Nasdaq in July. Its South Korea-listed stock is up 400% over the past year.
In June SK Hynix announced it would double capacity over the next five years, and last month it broke ground on its first U.S. plant in Indiana. Chief Executive Kwak Noh-Jung said the $4 billion factory would make the state a “key HBM production base in America” by 2030.
Intel and SK Hynix did not respond to a request for comment.