Gangwon Province lands 40 billion won investment for semiconductor ceramic technology

Gangwon Province has been selected as the final recipient of a national competition for the "Advanced Ceramic Materials, Components and Process Innovation Technology Development Project" for the semiconductor industry, hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT and administered by the National Research Foundation of Korea. The province will receive 28.4 billion won ($18.4 million) in national funding and 11.6 billion won in local government funds, for a total investment of 40 billion won in advanced technology development in the field.

From the founding of the South Korean government until around the early 2000s, a widely circulated saying held that "Honam gets the cold shoulder, but Gangwon Province gets nothing at all." Living standards in Gangwon were comparatively bleak, though the province has been slowly recovering.

Recent developments — including large conglomerate investments in Gangwon Province worth 100 trillion won, urban renewal support, investment in the Yeongwol tungsten mine, Gyeonggi-Gangwon semiconductor cooperation, and support for globalizing the medical device industry — have followed in quick succession, rendering the old saying about Gangwon being neglected a thing of the past.

Nevertheless, it remains widely acknowledged that decades of investment concentrated in specific regions under the governments of Syngman Rhee, Park Chung-hee and subsequent military administrations have left many parts of Gangwon Province still underserved by development.

The research and development project aims to support chipmakers in developing advanced ceramic materials, components and process innovation technologies. Its goals include identifying core source technologies for advanced ceramic materials needed in next-generation semiconductor processes, and achieving domestic production and technological self-reliance in next-generation semiconductor components currently monopolized by global firms.

The project selected for Gangwon Province comprises five detailed tasks and will run from this year through 2030. Within the province, the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology and Gangwon Technopark are expected to participate alongside related companies including Bobu Hitech and Mico Ceramics, forming a close cooperative framework.

Gangwon Province plans to maximize synergies by linking the semiconductor and ceramic research infrastructure already established at the Gangwon Science and Industry Complex with the Semiconductor Consumables Demonstration Center currently under development in Wonju.

The project is also expected to build a cooperative framework among companies spanning source technology development, mass production and commercialization of advanced ceramic materials and components for semiconductors, strengthening product competitiveness. This is projected to contribute significantly to internalizing manufacturing technology within the province's semiconductor industry, attracting related downstream companies and revitalizing the local economy. The province is currently home to 45 companies in the semiconductor and ceramic materials and components sector.

The director of Gangwon Province's industry bureau said the selection "will mark an important turning point in advancing manufacturing technologies for advanced ceramic materials and components for next-generation semiconductors and in expanding the industrial base," adding that the province would "actively provide support so that the R&D outcomes can translate into stronger technological competitiveness for local companies and the creation of high-value-added jobs."