The big picture
During a recent trip to Seoul, South Korea, Gravell said he met with the chief financial officer of Samsung Worldwide, confirming details regarding the timeline for operations and manufacturing to begin at the Taylor facility.
“Other than New York and Los Angeles, the most well-known city in the Republic of Korea was the city of Taylor, Texas,” Gravell said. “We had a positive meeting with the CFO for Samsung Worldwide.”
Gravell said the Taylor plant will begin receiving employees no later than July 1, with manufacturing beginning within that time frame.
Construction crews have also already started pouring the foundation for the second semiconductor fabrication plant, or fab, in Taylor, Gravell said.
Combined, the two Samsung fabs will total 11.4 million square feet.
The framework
Comments from the judge came after various reports of a possible delay at the Samsung plant.
In response, WilCo economic leaders have pushed back. Dave Porter, executive director of the Williamson County Economic Development Partnership, said in January that reports of a delay were "not true."
"Somebody mentioned at a conference that mass production would begin in 2025, and that's always been the case," he said. "They always said we were open to start testing products—start testing the chips—in 2024, and at the end of 2024, we'll start mass production in 2025. That's still on track."
Meanwhile, Gravell said officials have held multiple meetings with suppliers in the area and indicated there is a shortage of engineers in Williamson County.
The ongoing availability of both personnel and materials will continue to be a concern for the massive semiconductor plant, alongside the county's pursuit of economic partnerships.
While abroad, Gravell signed a friendship agreement with the Korean city of Yongin, which has been chosen by the Republic of South Korea to be the next semiconductor master cluster. Yongin has a total of 20 semiconductor fabrication plants planned for the area by Samsung and other manufacturers.
Gravell hopes the partnership will continue to support the growing semiconductor industry in the county.
“I really do believe Williamson County will be the largest semiconductor cluster in America, and I believe the city of Yongin will be the largest cluster in the world,” Gravell said.
Also of note
Gravell also highlighted the growing presence of the data center industry in the county, expressing his expectation that all cities in Williamson County will host "billion-dollar facilities” within the next couple of years.
