Domestic and foreign investments attracted by Gwangyang Bay Area Free Economic Zone (GFEZ) have exceeded US$ 9 billion as of September 2011, a GFEZ spokesman said. If this favorable trend continues, the investment figure is expected to reach US$ 10 billion in the near future, he said. Choi Jong-man, the commissioner of GFEZ Authority said, "The achievement of the US$ 9 billion investment was possible as all executives and staff members of the authority worked together in a single mind and made all-out efforts. In the future, we will continue exerting our best efforts to contribute to the creation of jobs and the development of regional economies through the active attraction of both domestic and foreign investments." GFEZ attracted US$ 8.57 billion in investments from 96 companies, including SPP, Hyundai Steel and Samwoo Heavy Industries, between its opening in March 2004 and the end of the fiscal year 2010. In 2011, it also lured US$ 256 million in investments from 13 companies, including Jeil Technos, bringing the total investments it attracted to US$ 8.8 billion. In addition, SNNC, a Korea-France joint venture manufacturer of ferronickel, recently decided to additionally invest KRW 335.5 billion in the free economic zone, bringing the total investments to US$ 9.2 billion. "With the investment by SNNC, the Gwangyang area is emerging as a core investment zone," Choi said, adding that POSCO also decided to invest 1 trillion won for 415,000 square meters in the Gwangyang State Industrial Estate last November to build a factory to produce 500,000 tons of synthetic natural gas (SNG) every year. GFEZ is aiming to attract $2 billion(about 2 trillion won) in domestic and foreign investments this year, up 18 percent from a year ago. Towards this ambitious target, it exerted an all-out effort to attract investment from the machinery, steel, and marine industrial sectors over the first half of this year, the spokesman said. Korea has been grooming a number of free economic zones over the past decade as it attempts to turn the country into a trade hub of global significance. Among the brightest spots has been the GFEZ located at the southwestern tip of the peninsula, which appears to be successfully exploiting its accessibility to China as well as Gwangyang Port's massive trade presence in building the foundations for a mega business hub, the spokesman said. The Gwangyang zone covers 92.7 square kilometers, and is expecting to complete its three-phase development scheme over the next decade. It is the third-largest among the country's six free economic zones following Incheon and Busan-Jinhae, he said. The free economic zones, which also include the Yellow Sea, Daegu-Gyeongbuk, and Saemangeum-Gunsan districts, represent the country's efforts to provide an optimal international business experience through waived custom duties, reduced taxes and regulations, and world-class airports, harbors and offices. By 2020, when the GFEZ will have grown to maturity, the area expects to be generating around 164 trillion won (about US$ 141 billion) in production, and support an urban population of 1.2 million. The GFEZ Authority, which oversees the management of the free economic zone, is also hoping that large scale international events, including Expo 2012 Yeosu Korea and Suncheon Bay Garden Expo 2013, will improve the GFEZ's exposure to potential investors around the world.
