Lawmaker says 4.4 trillion won of Saemangeum projects cancelled or stalled
In short
Data from the Saemangeum Development Agency shows 7 of 23 investment projects worth 100 billion won or more at the Saemangeum National Industrial Complex, together valued at 4.4237 trillion won, face contract cancellation or halted construction. Four projects worth 1 trillion won or more have entered formal cancellation procedures, including LG Chem and GEM Korea. Rep. Yoo Sang-bum of the People Power Party said current law has no financial penalty for simply not starting construction and called for idled land to be reclaimed.
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Seven large investment projects at the Saemangeum National Industrial Complex, with combined investment agreements worth 4.4237 trillion won, are facing contract cancellation or have halted construction, according to data the Saemangeum Development Agency submitted to Rep. Yoo Sang-bum of the People Power Party. Yoo, a member of the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, said the seven were among 23 projects with agreements of 100 billion won or more. Yonhap reported that Yoo described a “total crisis” in which core large projects are being pushed out through cancellation while sites stand still. [ 1 , 2 ]
Four projects worth 1 trillion won or more have entered formal cancellation procedures. GEM Korea, which planned a 1.21 trillion won project, was notified of land sale contract cancellation by the Korea Rural Community Corporation after falling more than six months behind on 44.9 billion won of a 49.9 billion won payment, and the Saemangeum Development Agency also began occupancy contract cancellation procedures. [ 1 , 2 ]
Rung Bai Korea, with a 1.2 trillion won agreement, was placed on the cancellation list after it did not sign a sale contract following its occupancy contract and failed to comply with a corrective order. LG Chem is described as having held about 338,133 square metres, or 102,000 pyeong, for 3 years and 8 months without signing an occupancy contract for a project of the same 1.2 trillion won value; cancellation was decided for when the agreement expires. [ 1 , 2 ]
Adding the auto export complex centre, a 110 billion won project whose agreement Gunsan City terminated midway after the private operator failed to raise funds, projects at the cancellation stage total 3.72 trillion won, the reports said. [ 1 , 2 ]
Other projects have started but not progressed. Hydro Lithium, with a 325.5 billion won agreement, and Lithium Fores, at 173.7 billion won, had their construction reports accepted in July 2023 but have stayed at 10.0 percent for more than three years. Daejoo Electronic Materials, at 204.5 billion won, has been at 0.0 percent since its construction report was accepted in December 2024, citing a change of business plan. [ 1 , 2 ]
Yoo said current law provides no financial sanction such as an enforcement levy for simply not starting construction, which he said has repeatedly allowed companies to take prime land and withdraw without cost. He called for long-idled land to be reclaimed immediately and for the supervision system to be rebuilt so that actual investment is secured. The documents did not include responses from the companies named or from the Saemangeum Development Agency. [ 1 , 2 ]
Why it matters
The figures, submitted by a government agency to a lawmaker, point to stalled large-scale investment in one of South Korea's flagship industrial sites, with several trillion won in pledged projects not being built. Rep. Yoo's argument that companies can hold prime land without penalty frames the issue as a gap in the current rules, though the documents contain no government response or proposed follow-up measures.
Key facts
- Of 23 investment projects worth 100 billion won or more at the Saemangeum National Industrial Complex, 7 worth a combined 4.4237 trillion won face contract cancellation or halted construction, according to data the Saemangeum Development Agency gave to Rep. Yoo Sang-bum. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Four projects worth 1 trillion won or more have entered formal contract cancellation procedures. [ 1 , 2 ]
- GEM Korea, a 1.21 trillion won project, was notified of land sale contract cancellation by the Korea Rural Community Corporation after falling more than six months behind on 44.9 billion won of a 49.9 billion won payment, and the Saemangeum agency began occupancy contract cancellation procedures. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Rung Bai Korea, with a 1.2 trillion won agreement, was placed on the cancellation list after failing to comply with a corrective order issued because it did not sign a sale contract following its occupancy contract. [ 1 , 2 ]
- LG Chem held about 338,133 square metres for 3 years and 8 months without signing an occupancy contract for its 1.2 trillion won project, and cancellation was decided for when the agreement expires. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Counting the auto export complex centre in Gunsan, whose agreement Gunsan City terminated early after the private operator failed to raise funds, projects at the cancellation stage total 3.72 trillion won. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Hydro Lithium and Lithium Fores have stood at 10.0 percent construction progress for more than three years since their July 2023 construction approvals, while Daejoo Electronic Materials is at 0.0 percent after its December 2024 approval, citing a business plan change. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Yoo said there are no financial penalties such as an enforcement levy for simply not starting construction and called for long-idled land to be reclaimed immediately and supervision rebuilt to secure actual investment. [ 1 , 2 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Data submitted by the Saemangeum Development Agency to Rep. Yoo Sang-bum of the People Power Party shows 7 of 23 projects worth 100 billion won or more facing cancellation or halted construction, totalling 4.4237 trillion won. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Four projects worth 1 trillion won or more are in formal cancellation procedures. [ 1 , 2 ]
- LG Chem is described as having held about 338,133 square metres for 3 years and 8 months without signing an occupancy contract, with cancellation decided for when the agreement expires. [ 1 , 2 ]
- Yoo attributed the situation to the absence of financial penalties for not starting construction and called for reclaiming idled land and rebuilding oversight. [ 1 , 2 ]
Still unclear
- How the companies named, or the Saemangeum Development Agency, respond to the figures and to Yoo's criticism. Neither document contains any comment from the companies or from the agency; the figures come from data one agency submitted to one lawmaker.
- Whether the described cancellations and construction halts will be completed, and what will happen to the land involved. The documents describe procedures under way or decided but give no completion dates or plans for reallocating the sites.
- Whether any penalty regime for long-idled sites will be introduced. Yoo's call for new supervision is the only proposal in the documents, with no stated government position or legislative step.