Leading Korean LED manufacturer Seoul Semiconductor and Lumens recently announced their separate new fab investment plans in Vietnam, reported Yonhap News Agency.

Seoul Semiconductor was awarded a license to invest US $300 million to build a new semiconductor fab in Northern Vietnam, according to sources.

Last week, the provincial government of Ha Nam approved Seoul Semiconductor’s application to construct a 750,000 square meter LED fab and assembly line, said the sources.

Under the Seoul-based LED firm’s investment plan, a total of US $300 million will be invested into building the site by 2019, which will be used to conduct research and produce semiconductors, they said.

"Vietnam was chosen because it will help us meet the global demand for LEDs and secure a competitiveness in production costs," a Seoul Semiconductor official said.

Industry sources projected Seoul Semiconductor’s strategy in Vietnam is to provide components to other South Korean tech firms that already have a presence in Southeast Asian countries.

LED manufacturer Lumens also announced it will begin operating its factory based in southern province of Binh Duong in Vietnam by September. The site is currently still under construction.

Lumens is mainly a manufacturer of LEDs for TV and smartphone applications, the company also collaborates with leading Samsung Electronics.

The Yonhap news agency article also named other leading Korean manufacturers including Samsung and LG Electronics new TV and other home appliance production sites and investments in the Southeast Asian country.

Vietnam has become an attractive investment hub for Korean companies because its monthly minimum wage is about 59% that of China.

Additionally, Vietnam has a large population of over 90 million people, where 60% are under 30 years of age.

"Vietnam has a very good investment condition as labor cost is very cheap and 54 million is a labor population," said Park Byung-book, chief of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency's (KOTRA) branch office in Hanoi. "Tech firms are increasingly making inroads into Vietnam, which used to be favored by textile or sewing firms in the past."