BAY CITY, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Biden will be going to Bay City, Michigan today to visit the SK Siltron CSS facility, a manufacturing plant run by South Korean Company SK Siltron. Biden is expected to be touting the $300 million expansion of the plant and to discuss the success of his economic plan and how it’s producing a manufacturing boom.

The plant got up and running this fall and is making semiconductor wafers that are used for electric vehicles and 5G cell technology. The company promised to create up to 150 jobs over three years at the facility.

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Michigan Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer is also scheduled to be on hand for the celebration as well and expected to talk about the creation of good paying jobs in Michigan.

When the expansion was announced in 2021, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo said, “As we build toward a more sustainable future, it is important that we create new, robust supply chains in the U.S. to support our corporations and the end consumer. The automotive industry has a tremendous opportunity with the rise of the electric vehicle, and we’re excited to see companies like SK Siltron CSS expanding to help support the transition to a green future.”

The South Korean company running the Bay City Plant, SK Siltron, is headed by Chairman Tony Chey (real name “Chey Tae-won”) who was in prison for two years and six months for embezzling $46.5 billion won currency ($42.7 million) from SK companies to cover personal trading loses.

The prosecutor had said, “This is a typical type of crime in which the heads of a company abuse their power. They should serve time in prison.” He was also referring to Chey’s younger brother Jae-won who was vice chairman of the group.

According to the The Korea Times, “Chey was also indicted for creating a slush fund of some $13.9 billion won – using it to invest in gift purchasing or making up for investment losses — while disguising it as bonuses for executives of the group from 2005 to 2010.”

Tony Chey has denied that he did anything wrong and was pardoned by South Korean President Park Geun-hye in August of 2015. The original prison term was four years which was one of the longest prison terms given for a business leader in the country according to Reuters.

The South Korean President said that the special pardons of 14 businessmen was to boost the economy and create new jobs. Chey returned to his post with SK Siltron in 2016.

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Chey had told reporters after getting out of prison, “I am sorry to worry the public. We will do our best to become the company loved by the public…We will ramp up efforts to contribute to the national economic development and social development.”

This wasn’t the first time that Chey was involved in shady financial dealings though. He was also convicted in 2003 of illegal share swaps to keep lucrative parts of SK Group under family control. He didn’t serve any prison time though because he was given a suspended sentence and was later pardoned.

The New York Times said, “In the scheme, officials said, Mr. Chey illegally sold shares in the Sheraton Walker Hill luxury hotel to another SK affiliate in which he was a leading shareholder. According to prosecutors, Mr. Chey forced the affiliate to swap his shares at twice their market value in exchange for shares in the SK Corporation, giving him a controlling 5 percent stake in the corporation.”

Chey was also accused of misstating the earnings of SK Global by more than $1 billion.

However, none of this precluded Chey or SK Siltron from doing business in America and partnering up with the Biden administration’s green energy agenda.

In July of 2022, President Biden hosted a virtual meeting with Chey to discuss the South Korean company’s investment in American manufacturing and jobs. Chey was in the Roosevelt Room at the White House on July 26th but couldn’t meet with Biden in person because the president was isolated after getting COVID-19.

The meeting started out with Biden saying, “Hey Tony. How are you, pal?”

Chey told President Biden, “So our cooperation will make the supply chain in both our countries more resilient in critical technologies. And the SK Group commitment to the United States runs deep, and we have backed that commitment with $22 billion of investment in U.S. in recent years. Today, we are announcing another $22 billion in new investment in the U.S., so including the major investment in semiconductor EV batteries and biotechnology. All this means that SK will invest in nearly $30 billion going forward, expanding on our recent announcement of $7 billion investment in EV batteries.”

He continued, “And so, SK will invest the half of our total investment amount in the U.S. in semiconductor ecosystem. This money will fund R&D programs in partnership with the leading American universities and restoration advanced packaging (inaudible) in the U.S…This initiatives will contribute to developing the next generation of memory chips, which will benefit the entire U.S. high-tech industry.”

He told Biden, “We share your commitment to green energy.”

Part of Chey’s LinkedIn profile says, “Preserving the planet’s natural resources has been of vital importance to SK for generations…as technology becomes more advanced, the promise, and possibility, of renewable energy has taken center stage.”

The profile post from Chey also said, “Growth is enriched by resolve and drive. SK has followed these principles when beginning reforestation efforts, and they are crucial today as we build renewable energy solutions, together, for a better, greener tomorrow.”