Gaeseong Industrial Complex To Be Sold In Lots Starting May 24

The Korea Land Corporation (Koland) revealed on Monday that it will start selling 28,000 pyeong of pilot business towns among the 1,000,000 pyeong of the Gaeseong Industrial Complex in North Korea.

The Korea Land Corporation had gotten permission to sell the pilot business town by lot from the Ministry of Unification this day, and the headquarters’ Foreign Consulting Team located in Bundang will accept applications of companies from May 24 to 27. Koland will organize a “pilot town steering committee” composed of the government, export-import banks, development companies and others, and plans to select about 15 companies on June 5 among the companies who have signed up to enter the complex. The criteria of selection are companies that have a higher chance of success, that emit less pollution substances, and that are labor intensive. Around 3,300 to 9,900 square meters plot land will be sold per business, and the price of each lot is 45,000 won per square meter (145,000 won per pyeong). Koland will sell the rest of land in addition to the plot town by mid September. The terms of the land leases are 50 years.

Eun-Woo Lee libra@donga.com