Samsung Electronics will invest about 170 billion won in a factory in Tamil Nadu, India, as part of a global supply chain restructuring.
T.R.B. Rajah, Minister of the Tamil Nadu Department of Industrial Investment, noted on the 26th (local time) that "Samsung Electronics will invest 10 billion rupees (about 168.6 billion won) in an appliance factory in Sriperumbudur near Chennai," adding that "this is a measure to strengthen trust in the Tamil Nadu workforce and they plan to hire an additional 100 people," which he disclosed via X (formerly Twitter).
This investment was announced seven months after the labor strike and sit-in that occurred last year. At the Sriperumbudur factory, hundreds of employees went on strike for over a month last September, demanding union recognition, improved working conditions, and wage increases, and protests continued in February of this year in response to disciplinary actions against some employees.
Samsung Electronics' Sriperumbudur appliance factory produces refrigerators, washing machines, and other products, accounting for about 20% of Samsung India's revenue, which reaches approximately $12 billion (about 17.3 trillion won) annually. The factory also exports products to countries across South Asia, and the Indian market plays a key role in maintaining Samsung Electronics' position as one of the top two to three in the global appliance sector.
Sriperumbudur is a region in India densely populated with automotive, electronics, and appliance manufacturing plants, with global corporations such as Ford and Nissan also operating factories there. The governments of India and Tamil Nadu are fostering this area as a manufacturing hub and are actively seeking foreign investment.
This investment by Samsung Electronics is interpreted as a strategy to enhance productivity and employment stability and to actively pursue business expansion in the Indian market.