Samsung Ramps Up NAND Production as YMTC Steals Its Top Spot in Market

Chinese memory chipmaker Yangtze Memory Technologies (YMTC) has emerged as the largest NAND flash chip producer in China, claiming a 38.5% market share in 2026. This marks a significant rise from 28% in the previous year, while Samsung's share dropped to 33.5% and SK Hynix fell to 17%. The shift has compelled Samsung and SK Hynix to enhance their manufacturing capabilities in China to remain competitive.

Samsung's manufacturing plant in Xian, China, accounts for around 40% of its global NAND production capacity. However, this facility currently produces older generations of NAND chips with approximately 200 layers. To address this, Samsung plans to upgrade the facility to produce ninth-generation V-NAND (V9) chips, featuring 286 layers.

Production is expected to commence with 5,000 wafers by the end of 2026, followed by a substantial increase to 40,000 wafers by the end of 2027. Despite this upgrade, Samsung's V9 technology is not its most recent generation, as the company subsequently introduced V10 technology, which incorporates more than 400 layers.

SK Hynix is also upgrading its NAND manufacturing plant in Dalian, China, which formerly belonged to Intel before being acquired by Solidigm. The facility presently manufactures 192-layer NAND chips, but SK Hynix has received US authority to produce chips with up to 240 layers. The company also intends to explore research and development for NAND chips with more than 300 layers, albeit additional US approval is required.

Meanwhile, Solidigm is preparing for a potential Nasdaq listing but faces opposition from shareholders and regulators.

Both Samsung and SK Hynix are grappling with US export restrictions on upgrading their Chinese factories. These restrictions require licenses from the US Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) for the installation of advanced semiconductor manufacturing equipment in China. In 2025, the agency declared it would not approve licenses for expanding production capacity or technology upgrades at foreign semiconductor manufacturers' Chinese facilities.

Nonetheless, Samsung and SK Hynix are proceeding with their planned upgrades while consulting US authorities.