GWANGYANG, KOREA - In October 2003, the Gwangyang Bay Area Free Economic Zone (GFEZ) was designated by the government to develop the bay area into a global business. Over 85.28㎢ of land in the areas of Yeosu, Suncheon, and Gwangyang in Jeollanam-do, and Hadong in Gyeongsangnam-do will be developed into leading business and residential districts -- Gwangyang, Yulchon, Sindeok, Hwayang, and Hadong.
“The GFEZ is a special economic zone with an optimal business environment such as industrial infrastructure, eased regulations, and supporting policies as it is located at the center of marine logistics of Northeast Asia,” said Hee-bong Lee, commissioner of GFEZ Authority.
The GFEZ has the geographical advantage of being located at the center of Northeast Asia, and offers a superior industrial infrastructure as well as a business friendly environment featuring a variety of attractive deregulation and support policies. “Northeast Asia is growing fast and is one of top three trading regions in the globe along with the EU and NAFTA. Northeast Asia, the most dynamic region in the world, has a population of 1.3 billion and includes Korea, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Japan,” Lee explained. “Within two hours of flight, GFEZ has a market of 1.5 billion consumers ready to be tapped. GFEZ's periphery is expected to account for 32.4% of global trade by 2010 and 30% of the world’s GDP by 2020.”
Lee continued to explain the unique competitiveness of the GFEZ compared to other FEZs. “The GFEZ is home to Gwangyang Steel mill, the world’s largest steel mill, world-class Gwangyang Port, the Yeosu Industrial Complex which produced more than half of Korea’s petrochemical products, the Sun Belt project in the South Sea, the 2012 Yeosu EXPO, and the 2013 Suncheon Bay Garden EXPO,” Lee said. “The GFEZ has greater growth potential than any other locations. The zone has high investment value thanks to low land prices, well-planned industrial complexes, and comfortable living environments that can attract investors. In particular, the Gwangyang Bay Area is located between Northeast Asia and the Pacific, and has major cities boasting populations of one million or more, respectively.”
“With our new vision, GFEZ 2020, we aim to build a world-class industrial and logistics city,” Lee continued. “The GFEZ has established and is laying the foundation for its five strategies – the biggest production base in Korea, an education and medical hub, a leisure and tourism hub, a major logistics center in Northeast Asia, and an international business city.”
According to Lee, after the establishment of the GFEZ Authority, a total of 128 companies invested USD12 billion in the zone, subsequently generating 30,835 jobs. In detail, 88 Korean companies and 40 foreign companies invested USD8 billion and USD4 billion, respectively. “This year, we aim to induce investments of USD 2 billion. As of the end of October, the investment in the zone stood at USD 1.3 billion by 11 companies. It is expected that ten companies will invest USD 440 million, creating 737 jobs from November to the end of the year,” Lee explained. “We will put our utmost efforts into attracting USD 2 billion, our goal for this year, by conducting diversified investment attraction activities for feasible companies as well as realizing investments through the formation of industrial complexes.”
“In spite of last year’s global economic crisis triggered by the European financial crisis, we induced investments of more than USD2 billion. We were able to successfully attract large investments such as those from MPC Yulchon Power and the first foreign school in Sorth Jeolla Province,” responded Lee when asked about the progress in the development of the GFEZ. “We are developing the zone covering three cities and one county such as Suncheon, Yeosu, Gwangyang, and Hadong by diving the zone into five districts in consideration of investment factors, demand, and effects. We will develop an environmentally friendly advanced industrial complex including logistics and new material companies. This will be centered around the container port at the Gwangyang District by completing the construction of industrial lands at the back of the terminals; 2.54㎢ in the East and 1.94㎢ in the west.
The Yulchon 1 Industrial Complex, appealing to companies with low prices of its land is home to 88 companies on the basis of Gwangyang Steel Mill and the Yeosu Industrial Complex. The Yulchon 2 Industrial Complex is smoothly carrying out its construction projects. For example, the complex established a special purpose company that completed the construction of shore protection methods.
“We sold 5,203 apartments and will open an internationnal school in partnership with the Maple Leaf Educational Foundation in the Suncheon Shindeok District which will be used mainly for residential, educational, and business purposes,” Lee added.
The authority is pushing forward with the operation of a Golf Island and the construction of marinas, as well as hotels and motels in the Yeosu Hwayang District, an area ripe for tourism, leisure, and entertainment. The authority also began the construction of the sea area of the Hadong Galsaman Shipbuilding Industrial Complex in October and will begin the construction of an offshore plant test center in December.
Notwithstanding a global economic slump, as of the end of September, the volume of containers handled by Gwangyang Port reached 1.593 million TEUs, an increase of 14.3% from a year earlier. “With an eye towards steadily expanding the container volume of the port, we will induce investments from Korean and foreign companies by conducting joint marketing with related organizations such as Yeosu Gwangyang Port Authority and South Jeolla Provincial Government,” Lee said “We will do everything in our power to increase the container volume through more active publicity activities when we hold overseas IR road shows.”
Lee took office as commissioner of the GFEZ in July. The Korea IT times asked Lee about his future plans. “I will strive to develop the GFEZ into a world-class industrial and logistics city by harnessing my 26 years of working in Seoul and provincial cities, my strong passion, and my ability,” Lee said. “We will attract corporate investors by pushing forward with development plans for 20 complexes in five districts and devising customized investment inducement strategies. At the same time, we will create a business-friendly environment by offering a wide array of administrative services.”
“To make the most of these favorable conditions of the GFEZ and perform the leading role of a specialized economic zone, we will concentrate on the issues to ensure that the industrial complexes and hinterlands for national and international companies are promptly and smoothly developed,” Lee said. “Also, in order to facilitate resident companies' management and operations and help them take the lead in job creation and stimulation of the regional economy, we will provide a one-stop support system and services to help them carry out their business activities more conveniently. Investors' complaints will be actively solicited in the field to identify their difficulties and resolve them in a timely manner. In this regard, omni-directional policies will be established to give companies greater reason to invest in the GFEZ. I am sure that the GFEZ is the hope and future of the Korean economy and a golden opportunity for global companies to successfully expand their business.”
