HANOI - Samsung Electronics Vietnam has begun construction on its largest R&D center in Southeast Asia in the new town of Tay Ho Tay in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Samsung's establishment of the Vietnam Research & Development (R&D) center quickly progressed after it was discussed as a key item on the agenda in October 2018 and November 2019, when Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics Jay Y. Lee had meetings in Hanoi and Seoul.

With a total investment of US$220 million, the new R&D center of Samsung Vietnam will be built on 11,603 square meters of land, with 79,511 square meters of floor space. The building will be 16 stories above ground and 3 stories below ground and is expected to be completed in late 2022.

Besides being equipped with advanced research facilities for mobiles and networking, the new R&D center will have a creative working environment that includes fitness centers, club rooms, an in-house restaurant and a rooftop garden.

Once in operation, the staff of Samsung Vietnam Mobile R&D Center will rise from 2,200 to 3,000.

This is the first time Samsung Electronics has constructed its own building to serve R&D activities overseas. It is also the largest R&D center among the foreign direct investment companies in Vietnam.

With the construction of this center, Samsung endeavors to help Vietnamese engineers enhance their R&D capacity not only in terms of technology products but also in advanced technology fields such as Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Big Data and 5G, which will create a foundation for Vietnam ahead of the many changes of the 4.0 industrial revolution.

"The construction of the new R&D Center in Vietnam is a strategic investment that is part of Samsung's investment history in Vietnam,” said Choi Joo Ho, president of Samsung Vietnam. “This will be the site that helps us to fulfill our promise of developing Vietnam's science and technology through nurturing excellent engineers in the field of advanced technology."

Currently, the total investment provided by Samsung Group in Vietnam is more than US$17 billion, of which Samsung Electronics accounts for US$9.5 billion.