Revision of Sejong City Plan Complete, Official Says

Revision of the Sejong City development plan is complete and negotiations with large companies on relocation conditions are underway, a high-ranking government official said yesterday.

“Prime Minister Chung Un-chan will brief President Lee Myung-bak on the revision today and then it will be made public Monday next week,” the official said.

On attracting businesses to the city, which is the key to the success of the revised plan, the Samsung Group reportedly expressed its willingness to invest in cutting-edge biotechnology. In addition, another of Korea’s top 10 companies is reportedly considering moving to the city.

Among mid-size entities, three including the Woongjin Group are known to have expressed their willingness to move to Sejong City. Woongjin, whose Chairman Yoon Seok-kum is a native of Gongju, South Chungcheong Province, is said to be negotiating with the government to invest some 100 billion won (87.8 million U.S. dollars) in solar power generation.

The official said, “Over the next three to four days, the government will fine-tune agreements on incentives with companies expected to move to the city” adding, “If the agreements are delayed, the announcement of the revised plan will also be postponed.”

Among universities, Korea University and the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology decided to open campuses in the city. Seoul National University, however, has yet to announce whether its engineering department will move there.

Under a government blueprint to transform Sejong City into an economic hub centered on education and technology, the land use plan will be significantly changed. Most of the 600 square kilometers of land set aside for 13 government agencies will be used for science venture companies.

Land for residential areas will also be used for industrial purposes. By doing so, the self-sufficiency rate of the city is expected to rise from 6.7 percent to around 21 percent.

Separately, the government held yesterday a meeting of a joint committee with the private sector to set land prices. The price for 3.3 square meters of land will range from 360,000 won (316 U.S. dollars) to 2.3 million won (2,017 dollars) depending on purpose.

Large-scale investors such as companies and universities will pay 360,000 to 400,000 won (351 dollars) for 3.3 square meters of raw land. The rate for small and mid-size companies will 500,000 (438 dollars) to one million won (877 dollars) and that for think tanks one million (876 dollars) to 2.3 million won since the land will be equipped with infrastructure.

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