Samsung Electronics will soon decide on whether or not to build a new semiconductor wafer plant in the United States. "It won't take long for Samsung Electronics to make a decision on building a semiconductor plant in the U.S.," said Hwang Chang-gyu, president of semiconductor operations at Samsung Electronics. At the Semiconductor & Display Exhibition (SEDEX) Korea 2005, which kicked off for a three-day run at the Convention and Exhibition Center (COEX) in southern Seoul, he said the suggestion of a new semiconductor plant in the U.S. has been raised from both inside and outside the country. "Although it is still too early to disclose our sketch on investing in an additional semiconductor line in the U.S., there have been many requests from both home and abroad and already seven years have passed since completion of our plant in Austin, Texas," Hwang told reporters on the sidelines of the industry fair. Samsung's Austin semiconductor plant was completed in early 1998 and generated $160 million in ordinary profit on $700 million in sales the following year. The plant is regarded as one of most successful overseas investment projects. This is the first time that Hwang commented on whether the company has plans for additional investment into expanding semiconductor facilities in the U.S. even though many U.S. municipal or state governments, including the Austin city government, have approached Samsung to attract its projected investment in the U.S. Samsung, the world's second-biggest semiconductor maker, only maintained that "nothing has been decided" on the issue. "We will make an official announcement at the appropriate time," Hwang said. Hwang participated in SEDEX as both a representative of Samsung Electronics' semiconductor division and chairman of the Korea Semiconductor Industry Association.