Construction to Begin Next Year on 9.3 Trillion Won Projects Including Saemangeum Secondary Battery and Yeosu LNG Terminal

Government to Complete Administrative Procedures for Yongin System Semiconductor Industrial Complex Within the Year at Economic and Investment Ministers' Meeting

The government will expedite the approval of the Yongin Semiconductor National Industrial Complex plan and improve related regulations to ensure that on-site standby projects worth 9 trillion won, including the Saemangeum Secondary Battery Specialized Complex, begin construction within next year. The government views corporate investment as the breakthrough to overcome domestic and international uncertainties and has decided to focus on comprehensive support, including shortening related procedures.

On the 18th, the government held an Economic Relations Ministers' Meeting cum Investment Activation Ministers' Meeting chaired by Choi Sang-mok, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance, to finalize and announce the "Corporate and Regional Investment Activation Plan." The Ministry of Economy and Finance explained, "This measure focuses on strengthening the institutional foundation that allows companies and regions to swiftly activate planned investment projects and make smooth investment decisions."

The government also decided to support the rapid activation of projects currently delayed on-site. In particular, it plans to closely support seven projects worth approximately 9.3 trillion won to ensure substantial investments such as groundbreaking within next year.

The seven projects include Gwangyang Gubongsan Tourist Complex (about 370 billion won), Gwangju AI Convergence District (about 740 billion won), Incheon Port Inner Harbor Redevelopment (about 590 billion won), Yeosu Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Hub Terminal (about 1.4 trillion won), Jeju Renewable Energy Stabilization Facilities (about 40 billion won), Saemangeum Secondary Battery Specialized Complex (about 5.5 trillion won), and Ochang Technopolis Industrial Complex (about 690 billion won).

The Gwangyang Gubongsan Tourist Complex development project will be supported to advance administrative procedures such as conservation forest area changes by more than six months to enable early groundbreaking within next year. For the Yeosu LNG Hub Terminal (Opportunity Development Zone), LNG and other clean fuel supply businesses will be added to the tax reduction target industries of the Opportunity Development Zone to strengthen incentives for investing companies.

Administrative procedures such as environmental, traffic, and disaster impact assessments for the Yongin System Semiconductor National Industrial Complex, originally targeted for the first quarter of next year, will be shortened by about three months to be completed within this year. The Tongyeong Complex Marine Tourism Complex development project will transfer adjustment authority such as fishery resource protection zones to local governments to support large-scale resort construction. The Forest Service plans to shorten the review period for lifting conservation forest designations through prior review.

Various regulations and systems will be improved to create an investment-friendly environment. A pilot project for trackless trams will be promoted through the regulatory sandbox, and a research project to improve investment and operation methods of professional sports stadium facilities to advanced country levels will begin next year. Measures to include foreign investment cash support target technologies to help regions attract eco-friendly data centers will also be pursued.

To allow companies to invest where they want, environmental impact assessments will be categorized into rapid, general, and in-depth, and projects with low environmental impact will be expedited through system improvements. For advanced national industrial complexes designated as national strategic projects, lifting development restrictions in environmental evaluation grade 1 and 2 areas will be permitted. Funding support for corporate eco-friendly investments will also be provided by expanding the corporate loan limit of the Climate Response Fund from the current 1 trillion won to 2 trillion won.

The government stated, "We will continuously manage to ensure that the tasks included in this measure quickly lead to investment, and through the 'Expanded Investment Express Meeting,' we will steadily discover and supplement investment support tasks."