The three major mega projects, a public-private joint initiative centered on the Honam semiconductor cluster, will be unveiled on the 29th. The projects aim to restructure the industrial landscape by expanding advanced industrial forward bases—such as semiconductors and artificial intelligence (AI), which have been concentrated in the greater Seoul area—to a nationwide network spanning the Honam, Chungcheong, and Gyeongsang regions. The total investment by major corporations is expected to reach at least several hundred trillion KRW and could approach KRW 1,000 trillion.

According to the presidential office and business circles on the 28th, the “Republic of Korea Grand Leap: Three Major Mega Projects National Briefing” will be held at 2 p.m. on the 29th at the Blue House. Following President Lee Jae-myung’s opening remarks, government ministries will sequentially announce policies related to the three mega projects: the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy; the Ministry of Science and ICT; the Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment; and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won are then scheduled to directly announce their investment plans.

The core of the nationwide investment plan is the creation of a Honam semiconductor cluster. Samsung and SK are in the final stages of coordinating the investment scale to build at least four advanced front-end semiconductor fabrication plants (fabs) in the Gwangju and South Jeolla regions. Typically, KRW 60 trillion to KRW 150 trillion is required to build a single fab. If investment in research and development (R&D) for next-generation AI semiconductors such as high-bandwidth memory (HBM), as well as in back-end processing lines, is included, total funding directed to the Honam region alone is expected to reach several hundred trillion KRW.

In the Chungcheong region, large-scale AI data centers (AIDC), which require massive amounts of electricity, are expected to be built in conjunction with semiconductor back-end processing hubs. Samsung is reportedly preparing to announce large-scale investment plans by key affiliates with production bases in Chungcheong, including Samsung Display, Samsung SDI, and Samsung Electro-Mechanics. SK hynix is also reviewing expansion of NAND flash production in Cheongju and other locations.

Regional investment plans for physical AI (robotics and smart manufacturing AI) hubs are also expected to take shape. Hyundai Motor Group, which announced in February this year a planned investment of KRW 9 trillion in Saemangeum, North Jeolla Province, will present its strategy for establishing AI and autonomous driving hubs through a briefing by Park Min-woo, head of the Advanced Platform (AVP) Division at Hyundai Motor and Kia. From the LG Group, LG Electronics President Ryu Jae-cheol and LG AI Research Head Lim Woo-hyung, and from Doosan Group, Doosan Robotics CEO Kim Min-pyo, will attend to outline future plans related to physical AI and robotics.

In addition, regional hub investment plans for strategic industries such as AI data centers and physical AI will be disclosed. Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Science and ICT Bae Kyung-hoon will present a blueprint for expanding regional AI infrastructure centered on AI data centers. The plan includes building an “AI expressway” that connects national computing resources and ultra-high-speed networks, as well as support measures for new and expanded data centers outside the greater Seoul area through the enforcement of the AIDC Special Act in February next year. A total of KRW 3.1 trillion will be invested in four major regional zones to create region-specific innovation hubs.

As a result, a nationwide advanced industrial triangle will be formed, linking the Honam region (semiconductors), the Chungcheong region (AI infrastructure and advanced materials and components), and the Gyeongsang and North Jeolla regions (physical AI and mobility). Business circles estimate that when aggregating the medium- to long-term investment amounts by major companies across these regions, the total will exceed KRW 1,000 trillion.

The government and corporations plan to put the projects into full swing through joint public-private on-site inspections after the briefing on the 29th. On the 30th, a public-private joint investment on-site announcement event for the Southwest region will be held in Gwangju with the participation of SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won. This will be followed on the 2nd of next month by an investment briefing at Samsung Display’s plant in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, to be attended by Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong.

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