SK hynix to acquire Intel's NAND business for 10.3 trillion won

SK hynix Inc. will acquire Intel Corp.'s NAND business in a deal worth 10.3 trillion won to boost its chances of becoming the world's second-largest NAND flash chipmaker.

The deal includes Intel's solid-state drive (SSD) business and its factory in Dalian, China but not the US semiconductor giant's Optane memory unit.

SK hynix will pay 8 trillion won by 2021 to first acquire its Chinese production facility and SSD unit.

The remaining 2.3 trillion won would be paid by March 2025 to acquire Intel's remaining assets, including intellectual property related to the manufacture and design of NAND flash wafers and research and development workforce.

According to SK hynix CEO Lee Seok-hee, the company will proactively respond to various needs from customers and optimize our business structure, expanding our innovative portfolio in the NAND flash market segment, which will be comparable with what we achieved in DRAM."

If completed, the deal would be the largest acquisition by a South Korean company, far higher than Samsung Electronics Co.'s deal in 2016 to buy Harman International Industries Inc. for $8 billion.

The deal will propel SK hynix from being the fourth-largest NAND flash maker to the world's second-largest.

Sk hynix had an 11.7 percent revenue share in the second quarter, while sixth-ranked Intel had an 11.5 percent revenue share.

Most of SK hynix's revenue comes from the DRAM business, where it as the second-largest global supplier.