Six business groups welcome three mega-projects, urge timely infrastructure support

Six major business groups welcomed the government's plan to advance three mega-projects aimed at a "great leap forward" for South Korea, saying policy support for nurturing future growth engines — including semiconductors, physical AI and AI data centers — must be delivered without disruption.

The six groups issued a joint statement Sunday saying they "welcome the government's decision to concentrate national capabilities on fostering future growth engines such as semiconductors and physical AI, and on expanding the industrial ecosystem, including the construction of AI data centers."

The six groups are the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Federation of Korean Industries, the Korea International Trade Association, the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business, the Korea Employers Federation and the Korea Federation of Mid-sized Enterprises.

The business community said the mega-projects carry significant meaning as a blueprint that simultaneously strengthens the competitiveness of core national industries and promotes balanced regional development — combining the infrastructure needed for advanced industries with the growth potential of local regions.

The groups added that maximizing synergies among semiconductors, physical AI and data centers requires not only active corporate investment but also strong government backing.

"We expect the government to carefully monitor difficulties on the ground so that planned corporate investments can be carried out without disruption, and to provide timely support for essential infrastructure — including power, water and sites — as well as the necessary regulatory framework," the statement said.

The groups also pledged that "the business community will actively cooperate with the government's policies to nurture future growth engines, continue to drive innovation and investment, and do its utmost to create quality jobs."

The government unveiled the three mega-projects plan at Sunday's briefing, centering on semiconductors, physical AI and AI data centers. The initiative aims to simultaneously boost the competitiveness of core national industries and promote balanced development by expanding advanced industrial infrastructure and establishing regional industrial hubs.

The plan calls for building four memory chip fabrication plants in the southwestern region — representing 800 trillion won ($518 billion) in corporate investment — to create a second semiconductor production base. An additional 81 trillion won will be invested in the Chungcheong region to develop a packaging hub.