Industrial Gases Air Liquide Invests Over 170 Million Dollars for Global AI Memory Ecosystem

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Air Liquide plans to develop two new production units in Indiana to supply ultra pure gases to SK hynix’s first U.S. semiconductor fab. Through this investment, the company aims to support the growing demand for next generation memory chips which are essential building blocks driving the AI revolution.

Paris/France – As part of a long-term contract, Air Liquide will build, own and operate two new production units in the state of Indiana to deliver ultra-pure gases to the first U.S. fab of SK hynix, a South Korean global leader in advanced memory chips. Through this investment exceeding 170 million dollars, Air Liquide will support the growing demand for next-generation chips that are critical to enable the AI revolution.

As next-generation memory chips, such as High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), require ever-increasing quantities of high-purity gases, Air Liquide will deliver large volumes of nitrogen, oxygen, argon, hydrogen and other industrial gases to SK hynix’s new cutting-edge advanced chips packaging facility. The new units will be commissioned at the end of 2028.

By installing its two state-of-the-art production units at the customer's site, the Group will ensure a continuous, high-quality supply directly to the customer's manufacturing lines. This strategic proximity is crucial to meet the stringent, high-precision environment needed for advanced packaging, a key enabler for HBM. This sophisticated process involves vertically stacking multiple layers of memory chips on a smaller footprint to reach higher computational performance and energy efficiency. Air Liquide’s ultra-pure gases are fundamental to guarantee the fab’s clean environment required by its customers to develop state-of-the-art technologies.

With this investment, Air Liquide reinforces its leadership as a major supplier to the U.S. semiconductor industry and builds upon its long-term global partnership with SK hynix, further strengthened by a recent milestone investment in South Korea. This new infrastructure allows the Group to meet its customer’s needs for rapid expansion while fully integrating its operations into the local ecosystem.

Choonhwan Kim, EVP and Head of Global Infrastructure at SK hynix, stated: “As development begins on America’s first advanced packaging facility for HBM, we are pleased to partner with key industry leaders to build a robust semiconductor ecosystem in Indiana.”

Matthieu Giard, Group Executive Committee member, notably in charge of supervising operations in the Americas, added: “This milestone investment underscores Air Liquide’s ability to bolster the growth of our long-standing and strategic partners, and accelerate the development of AI technologies. Relying on our three-decade presence in the Electronics sector in the United States, we are proud to support SK hynix’s first landmark expansion in America and contribute concretely to the rise of the most advanced semiconductor technologies.”

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