Lotte Construction Selected as Preferred Negotiator for 'Yeosu Public Sewage Treatment Facility Private Investment Project'

Bird's-eye view of Dalcheon Sewage Treatment Facility being constructed in Sora-myeon, Yeosu City

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dong-hyun] Lotte Construction announced on the 2nd that it has been selected as the preferred negotiator for the 'Yeosu City Small-scale Public Sewage Treatment Facility Construction' project, the first Build-Transfer-Lease (BTL) type private investment project in Korea.

The BTL private investment project is a method where 100% private capital is used during the construction period, and the initially invested private capital is recovered through facility lease fees during the operation period. Until now, projects such as sewage pipeline installation have been government-led, but since the revision of the Private Investment Act in March 2016, BTL proposals reflecting private sector creativity and know-how have become possible.

This project involves installing 23 small-scale sewage treatment facilities and 105 km of pipelines for sewage transfer throughout Yeosu City, with a construction cost of approximately 100 billion KRW. Lotte Construction will begin construction in 2021 after negotiations and detailed design. The construction period is 36 months, and after completion, Lotte Construction plans to operate the facilities responsibly for 20 years. A Lotte Construction official expressed expectations that "there will be a revolutionary improvement in preventing environmental pollution caused by domestic sewage in rural and fishing villages and in residents' living conditions."

Lotte Construction has accumulated years of experience in private investment projects through projects such as Busan City's Phase 1 (117 km), Phase 4 (95 km), and Phase 7 (89 km) sewage pipeline BTL projects, as well as Ulsan Gulhwa and Gangdong sewage treatment facilities, and Ulsan Nongso sewage treatment facility. Leveraging this know-how, the company proposed this project method and was selected as the preferred negotiator after Yeosu City's evaluation on the 12th of last month. A Lotte Construction official stated, "We will actively pursue new project orders and private investment projects based on Lotte Construction's accumulated private investment project know-how and technological capabilities."

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