Conglomerates to invest $201.7 bil. in southeast for AI, SMR sectors
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Korean conglomerates will roll out a combined 312 trillion won ($201.7 billion) in investments across cutting-edge industries, such as artificial intelligence (AI) and small modular reactors (SMRs), in the southeastern region, the finance ministry said Friday.
The business groups — Hanwha, Hyundai Motor, Samsung and SK — unveiled a set of projects to foster the chip, electronics and space industries in the southeastern Yeongnam region, building on its existing industrial infrastructure, according to the Ministry of Finance and Economy.
The drive comes under President Lee Jae Myung's tripolar mega projects, which center on advancing technologies across the country and turning Korea into an industrial powerhouse in the emerging AI era, following similar announcements for the southwestern and central regions earlier this week.
In detail, Hanwha Group vowed to invest 55 trillion won in areas including satellites, launch vehicles, and AI data centers for the space and defense sectors, while Hyundai Motor Group will allocate 42 trillion won to build the groundwork for AI-based autonomous driving, manufacturing AI and future aviation industries.
Samsung Group will also invest 60 trillion won to build mass-production lines for humanoid robots as well as next-generation batteries.
SK Group additionally said it will invest 140 trillion won in collaboration with overseas partners to build an AI data center with a power capacity of 2 gigawatts.
Other major investments include Doosan Group's plan to invest 5.1 trillion won in SMRs and other energy projects.
LG Group will also invest 9.4 trillion won in premium home appliance research and development and expand its production capacity for semiconductor substrates.
The finance ministry said the latest investment will establish a nationwide semiconductor production chain, with the Seoul metropolitan area focusing on manufacturing, the Chungcheong region on packaging, and the Yeongnam region on developing next-generation chips.
Korea will also seek to apply physical AI across various industries, including manufacturing, logistics and defense, establishing what the government calls a cutting-edge robot belt for innovation across major cities in the southeastern region.
The country will aim to foster new growth engines in industries such as shipbuilding, automobiles, space, defense and energy, making the southeastern region a global hub for cutting-edge manufacturing, it added.
Korea will especially seek to turn the space and defense industries into new growth drivers for the region, with the government providing all-out support, including policy financing.