SK Hynix has completed its $8.8 billion acquisition of Intel’s NAND business, finalizing a deal first announced in October 2020. The South Korean memory manufacturer recently took full operational control of Intel’s Dalian plant in China, crucial for producing Quadruple Level Cell (QLC) NAND technology.
The acquisition unfolded in two phases, beginning in 2021 when SK Hynix absorbed Intel’s US SSD design and sales division by establishing Solidigm as a subsidiary. Following initial setbacks amid semiconductor market downturns, Solidigm achieved profitability last year through expanded market share in high-value enterprise SSDs. This positioned SK Hynix second globally with a 31.3% market share, behind only Samsung Electronics.
The final phase concluded on March 27, with Intel receiving approximately $1.9 billion in the transaction’s closing stage. As part of the integration process, Zhidan Wu, a former Intel vice president who oversaw the Dalian facility for over 15 years, has been appointed as a management executive at SK Hynix’s Dalian operation.
The acquisition presents significant opportunities but also technical challenges. The companies employ fundamentally different NAND fabrication technologies, with Intel using floating gate technology while SK Hynix has focused on charge trap flash (CTF).
SK Hynix President Kwak No-jung faces additional obstacles from ongoing US tariff policies on memory production in China, which affect operations at the Dalian plant. Despite these challenges, industry analysts expect the acquisition to strengthen profitability as data center expansions drive enterprise SSD demand.
