The government intends to select a project operator and formally designate the cluster site — a stretch of land around the Gwangju military airfield — before the end of this year, officials said Wednesday.
According to the government and the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City, the city is in talks with Korea Electric Power and Korea Water Resources to map out how power and water will reach the site.
Electricity would be drawn from the Honam region's 345-kilovolt grid, including the Sinjangseong substation, through new transmission lines and switching facilities.
Running four chip fabrication plants would require about 6.3 gigawatts of power, the government estimated. It plans to meet that demand in stages by tapping the Hanbit nuclear plant and local renewable sources, while weighing a liquefied natural gas cogeneration plant on-site should the manufacturing process need heat and steam.
Industrial water demand is projected at about 650,000 tons a day. Officials proposed drawing on the Dongbok, Juam, Jangheung, Boseonggang and Naju dams, with treated water from a Gwangju wastewater facility reused for general process needs.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources reaffirmed in a policy briefing on the previous day its goal of breaking ground on the cluster and beginning production within the current administration's term.
The Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City is pressing the central government to raise its share of funding for site development and utility construction.
Under the semiconductor special act's enforcement decree, which takes effect Aug. 11, the state and local governments may cover 50 to 100 percent of the cost of building such infrastructure in clusters designated outside the greater Seoul area.
AJP Takeaway
- What: The South Korean government advanced its timeline for the Honam semiconductor cluster, targeting a July 2026 groundbreaking for the power and water supply facilities that will serve the site at the Gwangju military airfield.
- When: Announced Aug. 5, 2026, by the government and the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Special City; operator selection and site designation targeted before end-2026.
- Core requirement: Running four fabrication plants will need an estimated 6.3 gigawatts of power — drawn from the Honam 345-kilovolt grid, the Hanbit nuclear plant and renewables — and about 650,000 tonnes of industrial water per day.
- Context: Comes as the semiconductor special act's enforcement decree, effective Aug. 11, 2026, lets central and local governments fund 50 to 100 percent of infrastructure costs for clusters designated outside the greater Seoul area.
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