Hanwha Construction Consortium Selected as Preferred Negotiation Partner for Jamsil MICE Project

Aerial view of the site for the Jamsil Sports and MICE complex private investment project

The Hanwha Construction consortium has been selected as the preferred negotiator for the 'Seoul Jamsil Sports and MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions) Complex Development Project (Jamsil MICE Project),' defeating the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) consortium.

On the 10th, the Seoul Metropolitan Government designated 'Seoul Smart MICE Park (led by Hanwha Construction)' as the preferred negotiator for the Jamsil MICE Project. The project involves developing a complex facility on a 357,576㎡ site around Jamsil Sports Complex in Songpa-gu, Seoul, featuring a convention center three times the size of COEX, a baseball stadium, sports complex, swimming pool, water leisure facilities, hotels, and cultural, commercial, and office facilities. The total gross floor area of the buildings will be 880,000㎡, with a project cost reaching 2.1672 trillion KRW. It is a mega project conducted under a Build-Transfer-Operate (BTO) model, where the private sector bears the entire project cost and recovers the investment through 40 years of operation.

KITA, which first proposed the Jamsil MICE Project in 2016, formed a consortium with major construction companies but lost to the Hanwha Construction consortium in the competition.

The Hanwha consortium differentiated itself by combining expertise in complex development projects with private sector creativity. They emphasized innovative design and future technologies such as the metaverse. The plan includes implementing a smart complex in Jamsil featuring a metaverse that integrates online and offline experiences, performances and exhibitions that transcend virtual and real worlds, an integrated platform connecting facilities organically, autonomous shuttles, and urban air mobility (UAM).

Design is also a key differentiator. The consortium includes Populous, a U.S.-based global leader in sports stadium, arena, and MICE design and consulting. Populous has been responsible for designing and renovating over 20 Major League Baseball stadiums, including the New York Yankees Stadium.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to form a negotiation team soon and start negotiations with the preferred negotiator for the implementation agreement as early as January next year, aiming to sign the agreement in the first half of 2023. Seoul City and Hanwha Construction will carefully review various impacts such as traffic and environment, incorporate opinions from local residents, citizens, and experts to finalize the design plan, and begin construction in the second half of 2023.

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