SK Hynix dismisses Intel Ohio fab acquisition report; Intel reassures Ohio campus commitment

South Korean memory chipmaker SK Hynix (SKHY) was reportedly in talks to acquire Intel Corporation's (INTC) semiconductor campus in New Albany, Ohio, according to a report by Korea JoongAng Daily.

The reported deal would have allowed SK Hynix to establish front-end memory chip production in the United States within the next five years.

However, in a formal regulatory filing with the Korea Exchange (DART), SK Hynix officially denied the report, clarifying that while it continuously evaluates global investment opportunities, it "has neither pursued nor decided to acquire Intel's Ohio site and Fab," according to Chief Disclosure Officer and Head of Finance Kim Woo-hyun.

Intel also continues to reiterate its commitment to its multi-billion-dollar Ohio mega-site investment, despite operational delays pushing initial production targets out toward 2030–2031 amid broader foundry restructuring and yield challenges.

SK Hynix stock initially jumped as much as 8.4% in Seoul on the acquisition rumors before trimming gains following the official denial. Intel shares also surged 8.64% to close at $105.45 on Tuesday.

Originally broken ground in 2022, the 1,000-acre complex was designed by Intel to house up to eight fabrication plants with an estimated long-term development cost of $100 billion.

The initial report suggested the purchase would help SK Hynix expand beyond its planned $3.87B Indiana packaging facility into front-end DRAM wafer fabrication, while providing Intel with liquidity to offset recent foundry operating losses, which included a $2.2 billion loss last year and an additional $2.4 billion loss in Q1.