South Korea to pour 1,500 trillion won into non-capital regions in three mega-projects

South Korea's industrial map is set for a sweeping redraw as major conglomerates including Samsung Electronics and SK hynix join forces with the government to invest a combined 1,500 trillion won ($971 billion) in regions outside Greater Seoul, with Gwangju at the center of the push.

The government unveiled the plans Sunday at a public briefing on the "Three Mega-Projects for Korea's Great Leap Forward," held at Cheong Wa Dae with related ministries.

The first pillar targets an unassailable lead in memory chips and early dominance of the AI-era semiconductor market through a strategy the government calls "3S+1F" — speed, geographic expansion and technological leadership, backed by all-out government support.

Under the "speed" component, the government plans to cut the completion timeline for existing production hubs such as the Yongin national industrial complex by up to 12 years, while simultaneously launching a nationwide expansion of semiconductor production sites.

The most dramatic investment is concentrated in the southwest. A total of 800 trillion won will go toward building four memory fabrication plants — two for Samsung Electronics and two for SK hynix — establishing the region as a second major semiconductor production base after Greater Seoul.

Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong said the company is planning Gwangju as a candidate site for its next semiconductor complex. The 800 trillion won commitment surpasses the government's entire annual budget of about 728 trillion won, making it the largest private-sector investment in South Korean history.

In the Chungcheong region, 81 trillion won will be invested to build large-scale HBM fabrication facilities. The southeast and Daegyeong regions — anchored by Busan and Gumi — will be developed as innovation hubs for materials, parts and equipment, leveraging existing semiconductor industry infrastructure.

The government also plans to inject more than 30 trillion won over the next 15 years to secure an early position in high-growth markets including next-generation memory chips and edge AI semiconductors.

In AI robotics — led by humanoid robots — the government set a target of breaking into the global top three.

The plan calls for accelerating the AI transformation of manufacturing, deploying more than 1,000 industry-specific robots annually, and using investment from Hyundai Motor Group and others as seed funding to build a robot foundry and parts cluster at Saemangeum in North Jeolla Province.

The government views the next three years as a golden window for global leadership in physical AI, and plans to develop a world-class proprietary physical AI foundation model within that timeframe.

The third pillar — AI data centers — comes with an ambitious infrastructure blueprint. In partnership with SK Group, GS and Naver, the government will invest about 550 trillion won through 2029 in a first phase to build AI data centers totaling 8.4 gigawatts of capacity, centered on regional hubs outside the capital. Investment exceeding 1,000 trillion won through 2035 will bring total capacity to 18.4 gigawatts.

Alongside the data center buildout, the government will provide broad support for capturing the AI inference market with domestically produced AI chips, and for localizing domestic power and cooling solutions.

Through these three projects, the government aims to make South Korea the first country in the world to realize an "AI-based society." Comprehensive support infrastructure will be built in parallel to ensure the three mega-projects — led by the government and major conglomerates — proceed without disruption.

At the Yongin complex, transmission lines will be secured quickly through underground cabling and other measures, while the southwest region will draw heavily on renewable energy and nuclear power.

The government also plans to create "enterprise-type advanced cities" that integrate mass production, technology demonstration and research functions. These will offer company-tailored sites, expanded residential and education infrastructure, and high-speed transport links putting major hubs within one hour's travel.

A fast-track permitting system will be introduced to cut the time needed to develop industrial complexes — previously more than 10 years — by more than half.

"We will make the three mega-projects the core of our strategy to transform Korea from recovery to a great leap forward," a government official said. "We will mobilize all national capabilities to carry out each mega-project without fail."