[Sponsored Report] Economic zone staking its claim on business, leisure

Designed specifically to provide companies with an ideal environment to engage in global business activities, the Yellow Sea Free Economic Zone (YESFEZ) will look to create a cluster of firms in a variety of advanced industries and provide an optimum environment for foreign investment.

The goal is to integrate various business sectors including automobiles, steel, petrochemicals, information technology and biotech so that each industry can gain a competitive edge from a global perspective by leveraging the strengths of the economic zone. Following is a breakdown of the four main clusters that are part of the overall YESFEZ development plan.

Logistics Cluster

Pyeongtaek-Dangjin Port currently ranks as the fastest-growing transportation center in Korea, enabling quick connections throughout the country via a comprehensive transportation network.

Given the port’s strategic location, the YESFEZ plans to create a logistics base that officials believe will become an economic force in Northeast Asia.

To fulfill this vision, the YESFEZ is creating a logistics information center for the automobile parts, electronic information and biotech industries. It also will form a new complex encompassing warehouse and logistics operations that will connect with a theme park.

For the automobile industry, the YESFEZ will establish a base and logistics station that will enable the sales, export and import of automobile parts. For the electronic information industry, the YESFEZ plans to build an industrial exhibition center that allows electronics companies and warehousing operations to work together with Samsung, LG and other tech companies.

Additionally, it plans to develop a logistics center to handle assembly, processes and packaging.

The YESFEZ also plans to bring in premium clothes, fashion and home accessories companies to attract tourists from Seoul, China and elsewhere in the region.

System Semiconductor Cluster

The economic zone is close to the headquarter operations of global companies like Samsung Electronics and Hynix Semiconductor, which dominate the global market for memory chips found in everything from cell phones to other types of portable devices. Combined, the two companies and other local companies account for more than 38 percent of global production of memory chips. Korea is extremely advanced in the realm of digital televisions and mobile phones and is a major semiconductor market, highlighting the importance of the industry.

To help diversify the country’s semiconductor sector, the YESFEZ is seeking to foster the development of non-memory chips by luring companies in the advanced backend segment of the industry, which encompasses some of the late-stage testing, assembly and package processes associated with developing semiconductors.

By creating a cluster of companies in this field, the YESFEZ will create a low-cost logistics base for global semiconductor companies. To form the cluster, the YESFEZ will first establish an IC Test Complex for companies working on developing integrated circuits. The facility will provide a network service that companies can use together as well as a clean room. The YESFEZ is also planning to construct a shared warehouse for the convenience of companies within the cluster, allowing them to meet the needs of major firms such as Samsung and LG.

LCD Cluster

In 1990, Japanese companies dominated liquid-crystal display technology. Fast-forward 20 years, and the industry looks quite a bit different, as Korea has now taken the lead in this burgeoning sector.

The LCD market is expected to grow from $85.2 billion this year to about $104.9 billion in 2014. Korea currently captures more than 50 percent of this massive market. Over 55 percent of the country’s manufacturing and production activity in this field is handled in the vicinity of the YESFEZ, making the economic zone a major LCD hub. Going forward, the government plans to invest 20 trillion won in collaboration with private companies to secure and develop core technology in this growing industry.

As part of these efforts, the YESFEZ will look to form a cluster of companies that are developing LCD, AMOLED and flexible display technology. It will also build a center for research and development to ensure that Korea remains on the leading edge of the industry in the future.

Lakeside Tourism & Leisure Complex

One of the highlights of the YESFEZ is the Lakeside Tourism & Leisure Complex, an urban-style entertainment and leisure area for business visitors. As part of the plan, the complex will include two new tourism and leisure areas in Poseung and Inju. The sites will be completed by 2014 for a total cost of 1.04 trillion won. Poseung and Inju are located in ideal spots to lure tourists, as they are surrounded by areas with huge population bases.

Since Poseung is being developed as a hub for international business, the leisure development will focus specifically on business travelers. The main facilities will include business hotels, a condominium, commercial developments, shopping facilities and a multi-purpose conference center.

Given its location adjacent to Pyeongtaek Lake, the site has enormous potential to become a national resort and amusement park.

The Inju tourism site will have an eco-friendly golf course spread out over 2.16 million square meters of land. The 27-hole course will include a fairway condo, a golf academy and a state-of-the-art spa.