Muan County's industrial complex request moves forward as Gwangju mayor secures half-size guarantee

Gwangju Mayor Min Hyung‑bae told President Lee Jae‑myung at a cabinet meeting that the city will guarantee and support the development of half of the 1‑million‑pyeong national industrial complex (approximately 50 % of the site) that Muan County is demanding as a precondition for relocating the Gwangju military airport.

Muan County has submitted an application to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport seeking designation of the site near Muan International Airport as a "regional specialized distributed‑energy national industrial complex" focused on semiconductor packaging, K‑food, AI and advanced agriculture. The ministry will review the proposal this month, while the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy aims to accelerate the Honam semiconductor cluster, targeting project‑implementer selection and cluster designation within the year.

President Lee criticised any lack of cooperation on the airport relocation, emphasizing that national policies must benefit the region. The city and central government are also negotiating a 1 trillion‑won financial support package, partly through a state‑backed donation‑exchange scheme, to fund the airport move and related infrastructure.