South Gyeongsang Province on Wednesday unveiled a plan to build Northeast Asia's largest international business city on a 29-square-kilometer site — 10 times the size of Yeouido, Seoul's financial district — in the Hwamok-dong area of Gimhae.
The province aims to develop the area into the core hinterland city for the so-called "triport" connecting the Gadeokdo New Airport, Jinhae New Port and railway networks.
South Gyeongsang Province announced a roadmap to spend 18 trillion won on infrastructure and attract a total of 46 trillion won ($33.8 billion) in public and private capital — including construction of the southeastern region's largest international convention center — to transform Gimhae into a city of 1 million residents rivaling Singapore.
The initiative is underpinned by the Special Act on International Logistics Promotion Zones, which passed the National Assembly last month. The legislation provides a legal framework for integrated management of logistics facilities that had previously been fragmented across different ministries and regulations.
The province's core strategy to transform Gimhae into an international business city centers on developing five key hubs.
The centerpiece is an ultra-large international convention center planned for a roughly 330,000-square-meter site in the Hwamok-dong area — equivalent to about 50 soccer fields. Upon completion, it will serve as the southeastern region's largest exhibition and conference facility, functioning as a "global MICE hub." The project goes beyond a simple exhibition venue, incorporating luxury hotels and shopping centers to draw business demand away from the Seoul metropolitan area to the southeastern region.
"Busan's BEXCO is located in Haeundae, far from the triport site. An exhibition and convention facility in Gimhae, where the triport's benefits can be directly realized, is absolutely necessary," Governor Park Wan-su said.
The province will also establish a "complex logistics hub" to capture the future logistics market. A rapid transshipment system linking sea and air routes will be used to attract a Global Distribution Center for e-commerce. A high-value-added international logistics complex combining manufacturing and processing will be developed to prepare for the Northern Sea Route era.
An "AI-robotics logistics cluster" integrating artificial intelligence, robotics, manufacturing and logistics is also planned. Moving beyond simple warehousing, the cluster will foster advanced manufacturing industries such as robotics and sensors, alongside new industries including K-food and bio.
"South Gyeongsang has the second-most logistics companies after Gyeonggi Province, and the construction of Jinhae New Port will make it the largest demand base for logistics robots," Governor Park said. "We will create an ecosystem that attracts robotics companies and talent, similar to Shenzhen in China."
To bolster infrastructure, transportation networks will be significantly expanded, including a highway connecting the East Gimhae interchange to Jinhae New Port and a railway linking Jinyeong to Gadeokdo New Airport. The province also plans to attract logistics research and development facilities and data centers to advance the intelligence of the logistics industry, while building a "self-sufficient mixed-use city" combining residential and cultural functions.
To advance these plans, the province intends to apply for designation as the nation's first International Logistics Promotion Zone. According to the province, once the project is fully on track, the site development phase alone is expected to generate approximately 18.4 trillion won in production-inducing effects and create about 230,000 jobs.
"We will activate a cooperative framework with Gimhae City, Busan City and central government ministries to develop this international business city as a nationally led project," Governor Park said. "We will eliminate corporate regulations through the designation of free economic zones and free trade zones, and devote all our resources to creating an investment-friendly environment."