The government and the Gadeokdo New Airport Construction Authority have decided to extend the site preparation period for Gadeokdo New Airport to 106 months. Earlier, the government set an 84-month construction deadline and awarded the work to a Hyundai E&C consortium. But in May last year, Hyundai E&C sparked controversy by arguing that the site preparation period was too short to ensure safety and quality, saying a 108-month construction period was necessary.
Expecting its request to extend the construction deadline would not be accepted, Hyundai E&C officially declared on May 30 last year that it would pull out of Gadeokdo New Airport. After seven months of dispute, the government presenting a 106-month timeline is seen as acknowledging that Hyundai E&C's assessment was correct.
According to the construction industry and the Gadeokdo New Airport Construction Authority on the 2nd, the authority posted a bid notice for the new airport site preparation work on Dec. 29 last year and, the next day on the 30th, also announced bidding for the new airport access road construction. This marks the full-fledged start of expanding infrastructure such as the site and roads for the new airport.
What stands out is that in this notice the authority set the construction deadline at 106 months (3,224 days). In May 2024, the government set an 84-month deadline and sought a builder, but four rounds of competitive bidding failed to form competition and were voided. Then in Oct. 2024, it signed a private contract with the Hyundai E&C consortium, which had been the sole bidder.
However, when the Hyundai E&C consortium submitted the "Gadeokdo New Airport basic design (draft)" to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) in April last year, it concluded that the 84-month period set by MOLIT as a bidding condition was too short to ensure safety and quality and that a 108-month construction period was needed. It said opening in 2029 as the government demanded would be difficult and that work would have to continue until 2031. When this claim was not accepted and controversy erupted, Hyundai E&C declared in May last year that it would not participate. An authority official said, "This is not an extension of the construction deadline with any particular builder in mind," adding, "We internally reviewed it and extended the deadline to 106 months."
In the industry, some interpret this as recognizing that the 84-month deadline previously set by the government was miscalculated. Chung Chung-gi, a professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Seoul National University and former president of the Korean Society of Civil Engineers, said, "MOLIT also judged that completion would be difficult in 84 months," adding, "For a project that reclaims the coast and builds an airport on soft ground, the deadline must be set after thorough ground surveys, but because this was lacking from the start, the deadline has been extended again."
The construction cost was also increased from 10.53 trillion won to 10.7 trillion won. The turnkey, design-build integrated bidding method remains in place. In addition, for a joint contract, the composition of a consortium among the top 10 builders by construction capability evaluation will be allowed with up to three companies.
The authority will accept applications for pre-qualification (PQ) for participation in bidding until Jan. 16, then hold a site briefing on Jan. 29 for those that pass PQ. After that, it will spend six months preparing the basic design document (detailed design for priority construction work), then conduct design review and bid price evaluation to select an eligible detailed design contractor in August.
Meanwhile, the new airport access road construction has also set sail. A 9.345-kilometer-long, 20-meter-wide road will be built from Daehang-dong to the Songjeong-dong area in Gangseo District, Busan. The plan includes extending roads with land and sea bridges and tunnels (Daehang Tunnel and Gadeok Tunnel).
The total construction cost is set at 589.9 billion won. PQ applications will be accepted until Jan. 20, and a site briefing will be held on Feb. 2 for corporations that pass. The eligible contractor is scheduled to be selected in July. The construction period is within 2,550 days (about seven years) from the start date.
In the industry, large builders such as DL E&C and Lotte Construction are reportedly interested in forming a consortium. However, because the long-term construction period spans several years and unforeseen internal and external variables could push up costs, builders are expected to weigh whether to join a consortium.
Seo Jin-hyung, a professor in the Department of Real Estate Law at Kwangwoon University, said, "Because this is a large-scale civil engineering project requiring construction over a very long period, builders appear to need to consider various variables," adding, "Whether the government will raise construction costs if cost increases occur under the contract conditions will determine whether builders participate."