President Lee Jae-myung Holds Public Briefing in Gwangju: "Honam Investment Based on Economic Principles"

[Anchor]

President Lee Jae-myung stated that when comparing historically accumulated investment volumes, the decision to build semiconductor production plants in the Honam region is merely a drop in the bucket. He emphasized that the choice of Honam was based on economic principles and expressed his firm commitment to seeing the project through.

Reporter Kang Min-u has the story.

[Reporter]

At a public briefing held in Gwangju yesterday (June 30), specific details were unveiled regarding the Honam region investment plan, which was previously announced as part of three mega-projects totaling 896 trillion won.

The plan involves investments of 470 trillion won by SK, 425 trillion won by Samsung Electronics, and 1 trillion won by Amkor to construct semiconductor memory plants, packaging facilities, AI data centers, and computing centers.

President Lee Jae-myung noted that the slow development of the region due to past discrimination between the Yeongnam and Honam regions has resulted in available land and water resources, which have now become factors attracting investment.

[President Lee Jae-myung: What is clear is this. This is based on economic principles.]

During a cabinet meeting, President Lee also emphasized, "It is true that the investment in Honam seems significant when looking at this issue alone, but when compared to the historically accumulated investment volume, it is merely a drop in the bucket."

Regarding why Samsung and SK changed their plans to build additional complexes after completing the semiconductor cluster in Yongin, President Lee explained as follows:

[President Lee Jae-myung: Since demand is exploding, I suggested we proceed simultaneously, and they agreed, right? To put it nicely, I induced them to make large-scale investments; to put it more bluntly, I enticed them. I did not use coercion or force.]

President Lee stated that he would personally chair the Special Committee on Semiconductors, which will be launched in August, adding that he would prove this project is not just another common policy show by politicians.

President Lee is scheduled to visit Asan, South Chungcheong Province, tomorrow, and Jinju, South Gyeongsang Province, in three days to announce development strategies for high-tech industries in the Chungcheong and Yeongnam regions, respectively.

Reported by Jung Sang-bo and Yoon Hyung | Video edited by Lee Seung-hee | Designed by Jegal Chan
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.