Busan is good

Busan, Ulsan and Gyeongsangnam-do Select Four Growth Engines for the Southeast Region... to Build a “Super-Gap Manufacturing AI Industry Hub Belt”

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Busan Metropolitan City, led by Mayor Chun Jae-soo, announced that four sectors—advanced shipbuilding and maritime industries, future mobility innovative manufacturing, aerospace and defense, and next-generation nuclear power and energy—have been officially selected as growth engines for the Southeast Region.

Since the second half of last year, Busan, Ulsan and Gyeongsangnam-do have jointly discussed proposed growth engines for the Southeast Region, comprehensively considering local demand, each region’s industrial strengths and growth potential, and alignment with national strategies. Following continued consultations with the central government, the final selections were announced today at the Central-Local Cooperation Council.

Busan, Ulsan and Gyeongsangnam-do together form Korea’s largest concentration of key industries. With a population of approximately 7.54 million and a gross regional domestic product (GRDP) of KRW 366 trillion, the region accounts for approximately 20% of the country’s manufacturing output, making it one of Korea’s foremost manufacturing hubs.

The region already has highly concentrated industrial ecosystems encompassing anchor companies and partner companies in the four growth-engine sectors of shipbuilding, automobiles, aerospace and defense, and nuclear power, as well as universities, research institutions and innovation organizations. Building on the competitiveness of its existing industries, the region is therefore ideally positioned to pursue an industrial transformation incorporating advanced technologies such as AI.

By industry, the region ranks first nationwide in shipbuilding, accounting for 79.9% of production value, 76.4% of value added and 75.9% of employment. In automobiles, it ranks first among regions outside the Seoul metropolitan area, with 34.4% of shipment value and 30.2% of value added. It also ranks first nationwide in aerospace, with 62.3% of production value, 65% of value added and 51% of employment; in defense, with 57.5% of sales, 48% of headquarters, 43.3% of factories and 38.8% of research institutes; and in energy, with 48.1% of production value, 48.9% of value added and 34.3% of employment. Together, these figures demonstrate the region’s formidable industrial base.

In particular, Busan, Ulsan and Gyeongsangnam-do have complementary industrial ecosystems that can drive the industrial transformation of the Southeast Region by leveraging the respective strengths of each area.

Busan has a robust supply chain of small and medium-sized manufacturers and mid-sized enterprises, along with port and logistics infrastructure, a strong pool of university students and young talent, and capabilities in information and communications technology (ICT) and digital research and development (R&D). These strengths enable Busan to serve as a key testbed and industrial support hub for advancing the technologies of the Southeast Region’s core industries and leading their AI transformation (AX).

Ulsan has large-scale production bases for major national industries such as shipbuilding and automobiles, as well as complete industrial value chains centered on global anchor companies and extending from materials and components to finished products. By demonstrating advanced technologies in actual manufacturing environments, Ulsan will strengthen its role as a core manufacturing hub leading manufacturing innovation and AI transformation (AX) across the Southeast Region.

Gyeongsangnam-do is a major cluster for national strategic industries such as aerospace and defense and also has a strong foundational manufacturing base in machinery, metals and shipbuilding. Through advanced manufacturing technologies, ultra-precision processing and process innovation, it will emerge as a strategic manufacturing base driving future industries and AI transformation (AX) in the Southeast Region.

The Busan-Ulsan-Gyeongsangnam-do Megaregional Economic Alliance Promotion Headquarters, newly launched this year, will establish a development plan for the Southeast Region’s growth engines within the year and fully launch megaregional cooperation to promote corporate investment and advance the industrial ecosystem.

Following the selection of the regional growth engines, the three regions will work with anchor companies to formulate key initiatives involving the creation of industrial ecosystems, talent development, startup promotion, commercialization and industry activation.

In conjunction with the government’s designation of “Mega Special Zones” and its “seven policy support packages” covering finance, funding, taxation, regulatory systems, talent, technology and infrastructure, the three regions will proactively identify and implement large-scale megaregional projects expected to generate significant spillover effects throughout the region.

The resulting growth-engine development plan will be utilized in connection with the Megaregional Development Plan and the Comprehensive Plan for the Local Era pursuant to Article 9 of the Special Act on Local Autonomy, Decentralization and Balanced Growth.

The governors and mayor of Busan, Ulsan and Gyeongsangnam-do said, “The selection of the Southeast Region’s growth engines marks an important turning point as the region moves beyond an industrial structure centered overwhelmingly on the Seoul metropolitan area and emerges as a new growth axis for Korea. Busan, Ulsan and Gyeongsangnam-do will work as One Team to accelerate the transformation of our core manufacturing industries through world-leading manufacturing AI and mobilize all available capabilities to establish a globally competitive megaregional economic hub in southern Korea.”