LG CNS, Will It Become the Winner of the 3.6 Trillion Won 'Busan Smart City' Project?

[Asia Economy Reporter Buaeri] The operator for the 3.6 trillion KRW Busan Eco Delta Smart City national pilot project will be decided on the 1st of next month.

According to industry sources on the 25th, this project is a two-way competition between the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) consortium and the Hanwha Energy consortium. The KHNP consortium includes KHNP, LG CNS, LG Uplus, and Shinhan Financial Group. The Hanwha Energy consortium is composed of Hanwha Energy, NH Investment & Securities, Naver Cloud, and Daelim Construction. Initially, it was reported that Samsung SDS was participating in the Hanwha Energy consortium, but this has been confirmed to be untrue.

The Busan Smart City is the largest smart city project in Korea, planned to accommodate about 3,400 households on an 840,000-pyeong site in Gangseo-gu, Busan. The plan is to create a city equipped with an urban operation and management platform specialized in water-focused city features, robotics, and augmented reality. For this reason, companies are forming consortia, where they invest shares and take joint responsibility, to compete for the project rights.

A key point to watch is whether LG CNS, which was selected as the private operator for the 3 trillion KRW Sejong Smart City project, will secure victory again this time. LG CNS, which has been involved in the project since 15 years ago (then called U-city), has steadily built its business capabilities by launching the integrated platform 'City Hub' that consolidates and analyzes data for smart city construction. An industry insider said, "The KHNP consortium meets all the core areas of smart cities, including renewable energy, digital platforms, and future new financial services," adding, "Leading companies in energy, 5G, mobility, distribution, and construction are all positioned within the consortium."