Nation's First 3 Consecutive Years as Excellent Special Zone, Leap to Global Battery Innovation City
Green Vaccine Demonstration Center Completion, Stepping Stone to 'Global Bio Cluster'
High-Function Metal Technology Center, Foundation for
Last December, CNGR, the world's number one precursor market company from China, promised a large-scale investment of 1 trillion won in Pohang.
[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Dong-guk] Pohang City announced that as a result of reviewing the major administrative achievements of the past year, it has successfully expanded the scope of new industries that will open the future 100 years of the region and lead South Korea's innovative growth, thereby further strengthening the solid foundation of the region's sustainable economic "unwavering competitiveness."
Last year, the city focused on implementing the core strategy of the ‘3+1 New Economic Map (Secondary Battery·Biohealth·Hydrogen) + Steel Advancement’ to create jobs through industrial structure diversification and secure future food sources, achieving significant expansion of the new economic horizon by further expanding the future food source new industry ecosystem and core infrastructure.
Regarding the ‘secondary battery (battery) industry,’ the ‘Pohang Battery Recycling Regulatory Free Zone’ was designated as the ‘nation’s first excellent special zone for three consecutive years,’ and Pohang City won the grand prize in the battery industry city category at the Korea Brand Awards for the first time.
China’s CNGR, the world’s number one precursor market company, promised a large-scale investment of 1 trillion KRW in Pohang last December, and POSCO Chemical broke ground on an anode material production plant in April last year.
EcoPro is accelerating the establishment of the secondary battery comprehensive cluster ‘Eco Battery Pohang Campus,’ which covers everything from battery material extraction to production and recycling. As domestic and foreign companies expand their investments in the region, Pohang is speeding up its leap to become a ‘global battery hub city’ equipped with ultra-competitive advantages and an innovative industrial ecosystem.
In the ‘bioindustry’ sector, the ‘Green Vaccine Demonstration Support Center,’ a facility supporting the commercialization of ‘plant vaccines,’ a promising core technology that produces vaccines based on plants or plant cells, was completed in March last year as the nation’s first, pioneering a new bioindustry that fuses agriculture and life sciences.
Along with this, in May last year, the city held the ‘Physician-Scientist Training Launch Ceremony’ with POSTECH and Gyeongbuk Province and confirmed the opening of a medical science graduate school, visualizing the establishment of a ‘research-centered medical school,’ a key project that is realizing ‘bio patriotism’ through enhancing the global competitiveness of South Korea’s biohealth industry and innovatively improving local medical conditions.
Regarding the ‘hydrogen industry,’ in September last year, Pohang City was finally selected for the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s ‘Hydrogen City Support Project,’ laying the groundwork to build a future-type hydrogen city that applies hydrogen to all areas of daily life such as hydrogen buses, charging stations, and residential fuel cells, thereby establishing a foundation to lead an eco-friendly hydrogen economy.
Also, the ‘High-Performance Metal Technology Center,’ a core anchor facility for the re-advancement of Pohang’s main industry and South Korea’s development-driving ‘steel industry,’ opened in November last year. It is expected to establish itself as a hub space for research and development and demonstration support so that small and medium-sized steel companies can acquire global technological competitiveness.
The groundbreaking ceremony for the 'High-Performance Metal Technology Center,' the forefront base for the revival of Pohang's steel industry, held in November last year.
In April last year, Pohang City was finally selected for the government’s ‘Industrial Complex Renovation’ project, laying an innovative foundation to transform the aging steel industrial complex into a decarbonized, smart green industrial complex.
In the fields of ‘vehicle power semiconductors,’ expected to see a sharp increase in demand, and ‘quantum,’ selected as one of the nation’s top 10 strategic technologies, Pohang also planted the ‘seeds of fruition’ to grow into a global hub for core new industries that will open the future by being selected for government public projects.
In May last year, Pohang City was selected for the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s ‘Wide Bandgap Material-Based Vehicle Power Semiconductor Manufacturing Process Foundation Establishment Project.’
As ‘wide bandgap semiconductors,’ next-generation semiconductors that are ultra-fast, highly efficient, and high-temperature resistant, outperforming existing semiconductors in extreme environments, have attracted attention as an effective alternative to the global shortage of vehicle semiconductors, the city proposed a project to the government to support the commercialization of these semiconductors and was selected for the public project.
Moreover, in May last year, the city was finally selected for a national public project based on ‘quantum’ (research on quantum properties and spatiotemporal characteristics of topological quantum new materials), one of the nation’s top 10 strategic technologies.
The Max Planck Korea-Pohang Institute of Science and Technology (MPK), located in Pohang, was finally selected for the Ministry of Science and ICT’s quantum-based nanomaterial technology development project to overcome the limits of new materials. It plans to lead research utilizing international large-scale facilities by linking the Pohang 4th generation accelerator (PAL-XFEL) and Germany’s European XFEL.
Mayor Lee Kang-deok emphasized, “These achievements, which have contributed not only to securing Pohang’s future food sources but also to South Korea’s technological innovation and leap to a global powerhouse, are precious results achieved through the accumulated urban capabilities of Pohang and the united efforts of citizens and all members.” He added, “We will not stop our bold challenge to creatively fuse new industries, advanced technologies, and innovative research to present a sustainable development city role model that wisely overcomes the era of local extinction.”
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