SK Hynix Achieves 170,000-Ton Daily Water Savings at Domestic Chip Plants

Daegu, South Korea – September 10, 2026

SK Hynix, South Korea's leading semiconductor manufacturer, announced on Wednesday that it achieved average daily water savings of 170,000 tons across its domestic production facilities last year—equivalent to the household water consumption of approximately 550,000 people. The company revealed these figures at the opening of Korea International Water Week 2026, a three-day government and industry summit held at EXCO in Daegu.

Water Conservation at Scale

The announcement arrives as Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae has issued formal administrative guidance to SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics demanding greater wastewater discharge reductions. The governor's office highlighted that while the provincial government supplies industrial water at subsidized rates—more than 1.1 million tons daily flowing to semiconductor facilities—companies have not made sufficient efforts to reduce what they discharge into local waterways.

"Even when building semiconductor plants in deserts without permits, [American companies] are expanding investments to reduce environmental damage, but Samsung and Hynix, the world's largest semiconductor companies, are doing the opposite." — Choo Mi-ae, Governor of Gyeonggi Province

SK Hynix's Water and Wastewater Reduction Task Force, operating since 2018, has implemented ozone oxidation systems, activated carbon treatment, and multi-stage coagulation and sedimentation facilities across its entire water management cycle from intake to discharge. At the Icheon Business Site alone, wastewater recycling facilities produce 94,400 tons of reused water daily, supplying it to air pollution prevention equipment and other industrial applications.

The Cheongju Business Site became the first facility in South Korea's semiconductor industry to introduce externally treated wastewater for reuse in 2023, repurposing municipal sewage treatment plant effluent as industrial water.

The Yongin Semiconductor Cluster Challenge

Despite these conservation achievements, SK Hynix faces substantial water resource challenges as it develops the Yongin semiconductor mega cluster. The planned industrial complex, anchored by four new fabrication plants on a 4.15 million square meter campus, is projected to require approximately 390 million cubic meters of industrial water annually at full build-out.

This demand alone exceeds SK Hynix's entire eight-year cumulative water savings total. The Korea Ministry of Environment has proposed a two-phase water supply strategy to address the shortfall: combining recycled wastewater with surplus flow from Paldang Dam to supply 200,000 tons per day by 2031, and converting the Hwacheon Dam from hydroelectric-only to a multipurpose facility capable of supplying up to 600,000 tons daily.

Cumulative Savings Targets

SK Hynix has set a cumulative water resource savings target of 600 million tons by 2030, with an interim goal of 329 million tons for this year. The company continues to invest in developing technologies that further reduce pollutant discharge, including advanced wastewater treatment systems that minimize environmental impact while maintaining production efficiency.

The semiconductor industry consumes vast quantities of ultra-pure water for chip fabrication processes, making water management a critical operational and environmental priority. As AI accelerators and high-bandwidth memory production expand, water resource planning will increasingly determine where and how quickly new fabrication capacity can be built.

International Benchmarking

During Korea International Water Week, SK Hynix executives referenced water management practices at U.S. semiconductor facilities operated by Intel and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC). These American plants have reportedly invested in zero-discharge or minimal-discharge technologies, setting industry benchmarks that South Korean facilities face pressure to match.

Local water disputes in Gyeonggi Province have already produced friction. Yeoju City and Hanam City have stalled pipeline permitting for semiconductor expansion, and at least one cluster groundbreaking ceremony was cancelled outright due to water supply concerns.

"The water for the Yongin semiconductor cluster is precarious. I worry about what would happen if an unpredictable long-term drought occurs." — Lee Jae-myung, President of South Korea

Government Response

President Lee Jae-myung acknowledged the water scarcity risk during a June 2026 briefing, emphasizing the need for coordinated national water planning. The Korea Ministry of Environment has committed to strengthening environmental impact assessments and establishing discharge standards specific to local reservoirs such as Gosam Reservoir in Anseong.

Governor Choo's administrative guidance specifically targets wastewater discharge volume—the amount of treated water returned to local streams—rather than water savings or internal reuse. The governor's office argues that subsidized water pricing removes economic incentives for companies to invest in discharge reduction technologies.

SK Hynix confirmed its water management commitments at Korea International Water Week, stating it "will continue to advance our water management system to use less water, which is essential to semiconductor production, and reuse as much of it as possible."

The full impact of these water conservation efforts will become clearer in coming years, as semiconductor production capacity expands and regional water demands intensify.

Source: SK Hynix official announcement, September 10, 2026. Korea International Water Week 2026 proceedings. Gyeonggi Province Governor's office administrative guidance documents. Seoul Economic Daily.