Chungnam, Nationwide First Case of Non-Face-to-Face 'Hwaseong(?像)' Method for Foreign Investment Attraction...

[Asia Economy (Naepo) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Chungnam Province has succeeded in attracting foreign corporate capital through a non-face-to-face video connection method. This achievement is particularly meaningful as it was accomplished amid a sharp decline in global investment due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Moreover, the fact that the investment was secured through an online video connection method, considering the COVID-19 situation, is also noteworthy. It is understood that this method of attracting investment via video connection is the first not only in Chungnam but also nationwide.

According to the province on the 23rd, Chungnam Governor Yang Seung-jo held a video conference at the provincial government’s video conference room with Asbjørn Resell Søvik, Senior Vice President of the Norwegian company Welchem, and signed a foreign investment attraction agreement.

Welchem is a precision chemical company located in Oslo, Norway, and is considered one of the top five companies worldwide in the same field.

Based on the agreement signed with the province, Welchem plans to invest $29 million over the next five years to build a 4,000㎡ special silicone production plant at Basel Chemie in the Seocheon Wonsu Industrial Complex and hire 10 new employees.

The province expects that once Welchem’s investment is completed and product production is in full swing, it will generate an export effect of 9 billion KRW and an import substitution effect of 27 billion KRW over the next five years.

The signing of the agreement via video connection was carried out considering the difficulty of mutual visits due to COVID-19.

In particular, the province has identified that such a video agreement is a rare case not only in Chungnam but also nationwide. While it is common for local governments and domestic companies to sign agreements online or for domestic institutions or companies to hold meetings with overseas institutions or companies via video, this is the first time a foreign investment attraction agreement has been signed through a video connection method.

Chungnam Governor Yang Seung-jo said, “The investment attraction agreement with Welchem holds great significance as it was achieved amid concerns about the global economic downturn caused by COVID-19,” and added, “The province will continue to focus on attracting foreign investment and steadily promote cases of global companies investing in the province.”

He also added, “Based on the success of this video connection investment attraction, the province plans to actively review and utilize non-face-to-face online video agreement methods in the future.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.