Hyundai Motor Group's large-scale investment in Saemangeum and Jeonbuk Province's hydrogen pipeline construction are generating strong synergy, drawing attention as a successful model of mutual cooperation. According to the Seoul Economic Daily on the 22nd, Jeonbuk Province has decided to lay a pipeline network so that the clean hydrogen produced by Hyundai Motor Group at the Saemangeum industrial complex can be supplied to neighboring areas. It is a "win-win model" that aligns the interests of Hyundai, which urgently needs hydrogen production, and local governments seeking to create jobs by attracting companies.
What stands out in particular is the local governments' unsparing support, both financial and otherwise, for Hyundai's large-scale investment. Hyundai Motor Group plans to invest 1 trillion won to build a 200-megawatt (MW) water electrolysis facility and produce 30,000 tons of clean hydrogen annually. In response, Jeonbuk's local governments are spending 160 billion won to build a total of 37.2 kilometers of hydrogen pipeline. Jeonbuk Province even revised its ordinance to raise the subsidy limit for companies with high levels of local investment and employment.
Saemangeum in Jeonbuk is a place whose investment value is rated so highly that Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang proposed cooperation, calling it an "artificial intelligence (AI) valley" project. In that respect, this cooperation model could serve as a catalyst for expanding domestic investment and revitalizing the regional economy. In addition to its hydrogen business, Hyundai Motor Group has decided to invest 9 trillion won in Saemangeum over five years to build an AI data center, a robot cluster, and a water electrolysis plant. Once this project is in full operation, it is expected to bring 16 trillion won in economic effects and create 71,000 jobs for local governments.
The Saemangeum model of Hyundai and Jeonbuk is worthy of being held up as an exemplary case of regional investment. If Samsung Electronics and SK hynix were to build new semiconductor plants in the southern region or elsewhere, we hope a successful "win-win" between companies and local governments shines once again. Under no circumstances should a site be determined or business viability be undermined by political influence or regional spoils-sharing. The mistakes of the past—when corporate regional investment or plant relocation was swayed by political pressure from the ruling power or by political logic, resulting in reduced efficiency—must not be repeated. On this occasion, the ruling party and the government should also carefully prepare comprehensive support measures for companies making regional investments and for local governments actively working to attract investment.
