On October 6, lawmakers engaged in a heated debate during a National Assembly audit of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy regarding the Honam semiconductor cluster investment, part of the government's three major mega-projects. The ruling People Power Party raised suspicions that the government pressured companies in the site selection process, while the opposition Democratic Party emphasized the autonomy of corporate decision-making.
The National Assembly's Industry, Trade, and Small and Medium Enterprises Committee held the audit to scrutinize the ministry's actions.
The People Power Party criticized the failure to summon key witnesses, including Lee Jae-yong, chairman of Samsung Electronics, and Chey Tae-won, chairman of SK Group. Lawmaker Seo Ji-young pointed out, "Today, there is only one witness for the audit. This is unprecedented. How can we conduct a proper audit without witnesses or references?"
Seo added, "We requested witnesses from Samsung and SK Hynix regarding the Honam semiconductor mega-project, but all requests were ignored. We need to uncover why these witnesses were not selected and who blocked them."
In response, Democratic Party lawmaker Jang Cheol-min, who serves as the committee's secretary, stated, "Discussions regarding audit witnesses among the secretaries are not yet finalized. We have not heard any requests from the opposition to summon anyone other than Lee Jae-yong and Chey Tae-won regarding Samsung or SK Hynix."
The People Power Party focused its inquiries on the fairness of the site selection for the Honam semiconductor cluster. Lawmaker Jo Ji-yeon asked Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jeong-kwan, "Was the site selection for the mega-project fair? Did the companies propose the southwestern region first?" Minister Kim responded, "The companies ultimately chose the southwestern region. That was part of the process."
Jo countered, "The companies consistently claim they never suggested a specific region first. According to my confirmation yesterday, they have not disclosed any investment plans for the southwestern region and have not definitively stated they would invest in a specific area. We are now in a truth dispute between the government and the companies."
Another lawmaker from the same party, Yoon Han-hong, noted, "After multiple inquiries to Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, we received reports indicating that the southwestern semiconductor project was deemed impossible due to insufficient power, water, and workforce. When proposing sites, did they only suggest Honam, or did they consider other regions as well?" Minister Kim replied, "There were several regions, and non-Honam areas were certainly included. From the companies' perspective, they had to consider various sites, and the government did as well."
The Democratic Party defended the government, stating that companies had explored multiple regions for semiconductor investment even before the official announcement. Lawmaker Park Hee-seung mentioned, "Before the investment announcement, I had the opportunity to dine with the president of Samsung Electronics and asked if there was land available for a 2 million pyeong semiconductor site in my constituency, Namwon, Jeonbuk. Wouldn't large corporations conduct their own cost-benefit analysis before making such a significant investment?"
Additionally, citing the power and water conditions in the capital region, he argued, "For the sake of balanced regional development, the choice of the southwestern location seems reasonable, and strategically, dispersion is necessary. Samsung and Hynix chose the southwestern region because it has access to water and electricity; there was no coercion involved."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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