▲ Min Hyung-bae, Mayor of the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City, inspects the Air Force ammunition depot site near the Gwangju Military Airport on July 7. The government has selected the Gwangju Military Airport site for the Honam region semiconductor cluster.
Min Hyung-bae, Mayor of the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City, stated that the construction of a semiconductor industrial complex at the Gwangju Military Airport site, which has been confirmed as the location for the Honam region semiconductor cluster, "can begin even before the military airport is fully relocated."
During a visit to the site in Dosan-dong and Sinchon-dong, Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, today (July 7), Mayor Min explained the current status to reporters, saying, "This site requires almost no preliminary procedures, making it ideal for a fast-tracked project."
The area designated by the government yesterday as the Honam region semiconductor cluster site is the military airport area located approximately 1 km from Gwangju Songjeong Station. The total area, including the current military airport site and the planned ammunition depot site, spans approximately 8.2 square kilometers (2.48 million pyeong).
Mayor Min emphasized, "Most of this land is state-owned and flat, making it optimal for an industrial complex. It is difficult to find land with such conditions, as there are almost no issues regarding resident acceptance."
However, he explained that tasks remain in the process of creating the industrial complex, including the relocation of the military airport, maintenance of military facilities, handling of U.S. military-related facilities, and the management of fuel storage facilities and oil pipelines.
He stated, "One of the issues related to the military airport is the fuel storage facility. There were concerns about environmental pollution as fuel tanks had been there for a long time, but I have checked that the relevant purification work is almost complete."
He added, "We also need to review how to handle the oil pipelines connected to facilities used by the U.S. military that remain in some parts of the site."
He noted that these tasks are not factors that would prevent the start of the industrial complex project itself.
Mayor Min said, "Once the issue regarding Air Force training is resolved, we can start regardless of the military airport relocation. Now that the site has been decided, we must simultaneously begin securing power transmission lines, electricity, and water to ensure the fast-track approach works."
Regarding power supply, he mentioned the possibility of connecting to the Sinjangseong Substation in Jangseong, explaining, "About 1 GW is needed for the first semiconductor fab, and we must even consider dual-circuit lines to prevent power outages."
On the topic of water supply, he said, "60,000 tons are needed for the first fab, and about 100,000 tons for stable operations. We believe there will be no issues supplying up to four fabs if we just connect the pipelines."
While stating that a concrete roadmap requires consultation between companies and the government, Mayor Min said, "The essence of the fast-track approach is to ensure that companies do not hesitate or back out. Our goal is to firmly establish the project within the terms of the President and the local government."
The Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City plans to hold a signboard-hanging ceremony for the Semiconductor Strategy Committee this afternoon and begin full-scale operations of a working-level support system to oversee follow-up procedures such as site selection, power, water, and licensing.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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