On June 5, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy Koo Yun-cheol chaired a meeting at the Government Seoul Building, where he announced measures to expedite the seventh Regional Revitalization Investment Fund project. This initiative involves the construction and operation of a data center in the Nam-myeon area of Jangseong, located within the Gwangju Research and Development Special Zone.
The data center will have a power capacity of 26 megawatts (MW), with an IT load of 16.7 MW, providing server space for cloud service providers and offering ancillary services such as power supply and climate control. This key project, which has been pursued by Jangseong County and private entities since 2023, aims to expand its power capacity to 60 MW in the future, establishing it as a hub for AI development.
The total project cost is estimated at 395.9 billion won, funded through 100 billion won in equity and 295.9 billion won in project financing loans. Jeollanam-do and Jangseong County plan to contribute a total of 8 billion won, with Jeollanam-do investing 4.8 billion won and Jangseong County 3.2 billion won.
The project was selected for investment by Korea Growth Investment Corporation in November 2022, and construction began in February 2023 following project financing agreements. As of late April, the project was 9.21% complete. It is expected to be completed by December 2027, followed by a three-month stabilization period before commencing full operations in March 2028.
To ensure timely completion of the data center, the government has decided to expedite the special purpose corporation (SPC) investment procedures for Jeollanam-do and Jangseong County. This will involve applying a special track that exempts local financial investment reviews, streamlining the related processes following approval from the Economic Relations Ministers' Meeting.
The government anticipates that this project will help alleviate the concentration of AI infrastructure in the Seoul metropolitan area and promote the digital transformation of regional industries. Upon completion, it is expected to generate approximately 800 billion won in production effects and create around 3,000 jobs, contributing to the revitalization of the local economy.
The Regional Revitalization Investment Fund is a program designed to attract private investment for regional projects, based on a master fund established by the government and policy finance institutions. To date, eight projects have been selected across various regions and sectors, with an estimated total project cost of around 3.6 trillion won.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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