SK, AWS to build South Korea's largest AI data center in Ulsan

By Lee Gi-woo, Kim Mi-ge, THE CHOSUN Daily - SK Group has partnered with Amazon Web Services (AWS), the world’s leading cloud services provider, to construct a massive artificial intelligence (AI) data center in the Ulsan Mipo National Industrial Complex. The facility, which will house 60,000 graphics processing units (GPUs), is set to become the largest AI-dedicated data center ever announced in South Korea.

Industry sources said on June 15 that SK Group will host a launch event later this month, with groundbreaking scheduled for August. The project will be built in phases, beginning with a 41-megawatt (MW) facility slated for completion by November 2027. The second phase will expand capacity to 103MW by February 2029. SK ultimately plans to scale the facility to 1 gigawatt (GW), with the goal of establishing the largest AI data center hub in Northeast Asia.

SK Group and AWS will jointly invest several trillion won in the project. SK Telecom and SK Broadband, which are spearheading the AI infrastructure initiative, previously announced plans to invest 3.4 trillion won ($2.4 billion) in AI by 2028. A significant portion of that investment will be allocated to this joint venture with AWS. The project is also being supported by other SK affiliates, including SK Gas and SK hynix. Industry officials noted that AWS alone is expected to commit $4 billion (approximately 5.47 trillion won) to the development.

The planned 60,000-GPU facility will far exceed the scale of any current or planned AI infrastructure in South Korea. By comparison, the government’s National AI Computing Center is expected to deploy 15,000 GPUs—one-quarter of the GPU capacity SK Telecom is preparing to install.

AWS already operates a data center in Seoul and began construction on another in the Seo District of Incheon last year, investing several trillion won. The new Ulsan facility marks a shift from the capital region, a typical choice for major tech projects. However, the site’s proximity to SK Gas’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) combined heat and power plant offers a strategic advantage, providing access to the substantial energy supply needed for a 100MW-class data center. Analysts said securing a stable and scalable power source was a key factor in selecting the location.

The project is expected to serve as a cornerstone of SK Group’s AI strategy. At the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2025 earlier this year, SK Telecom President and CEO Ryu Young-sang identified the development of “customized AI data centers” as a central pillar of the company’s business roadmap. The model is designed to offer tailored AI infrastructure for clients ranging from global tech giants to domestic startups. During the briefing, Ryu pointed to plans for a 60,000-GPU facility, built in collaboration with a major global player—now revealed to be AWS—as a flagship example of that strategy.

Source:https://www.chosun.com/english/industry-en/2025/06/15/F35YN4FLE5AFLOPOU2VA44POCY/