President Lee Jae-myung attended on the 27th the investment signing ceremony for the "Saemangeum robot, hydrogen, and AI (artificial intelligence) city" by Jeonbuk State and Hyundai Motor Group and said, "We will drastically lower the barriers to regulation and administrative support so that corporations can fully exercise their capabilities and grow further."
At the ceremony held that morning at the Saemangeum Convention Center in Gunsan, the president said, "I express my deep gratitude to Chairman Chung Eui-sun and all the executives and employees of Hyundai Motor Group for making a bold decision." He also said, "The government will firmly back this investment so that it becomes the best model case for leading corporations' expansion into regions and, further, returns as greater benefits to both corporations and regions."
The investment calls for Hyundai Motor to invest about 9 trillion won in Saemangeum, with Jeonbuk State, the Saemangeum Development and Investment Agency, the Ministry of Science and ICT, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment (MCEE), and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport taking part. The gist is to build a "produce locally, consume locally" structure in which power generated in the region is consumed in the region. It aims to produce green hydrogen in Saemangeum and supply it to a hydrogen mobility and hydrogen AI pilot city.
First, ▲ produce 30,000 tons of eco-friendly green hydrogen annually in Saemangeum and supply it to industrial complexes such as Jeonju and Wanju, and ▲ bring a large-scale robot manufacturing plant and parts cluster, and an AI data center to Saemangeum. The goal is to mass-produce logistics and industrial robots for the first time in Korea.
The president said, "Saemangeum boasts a vast site about 140 times the size of Yeouido and abundant sunlight, and its logistics and transportation infrastructure is also being robustly built," adding, "If Hyundai Motor Group's innovative capabilities and abundant resources are combined, Saemangeum will become a land of opportunity that delivers optimal synergy."
He also said, "Based on this advanced technological prowess, Saemangeum will be reborn as a 'future city' where anyone can conveniently use robots in everyday life," and, "This investment by Hyundai Motor Group will not only secure global competitiveness for South Korea's artificial intelligence and robot industries, but also completely redraw the economic map of the entire Honam region."
He also pledged government-level support. The president said, "The government will respond to corporations' bold decisions with even bolder support," and, "We will carefully improve living conditions so that corporations and employees who relocate to the region do not feel inconvenienced in their daily lives." In particular, he said related regulations will be eased and the scope of administrative support will be expanded.