2030 Busan Expo Private Committee Launched... Samsung, SK, Hyundai Motor, LG, Lotte, and Others in 'All-Out Effort'

'61 Trillion' Economic Effect... Decision in November Next Year, Korea·Italy·Saudi Arabia Three-Way Battle
Economic Delegation and Overseas Sales Network Fully Mobilized..."'Public-Private Joint' Effort to Secure Votes"

On the 22nd of last month, President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol took a commemorative photo with attendees at the 2030 Busan World Expo bid support rally held at the Busan Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Busanjin-gu, Busan. From the left: Park Hyung-joon, Mayor of Busan; Kim Young-joo, Bid Committee Chairman; President Yoon; Choi Tae-won, Chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Jang In-hwa, Chairman of the Busan Chamber of Commerce. Photo by the Transition Team Press Corps

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The '2030 Busan World Expo (Expo) Private Committee,' composed of 11 companies including the top five domestic conglomerates Samsung Electronics, SK, Hyundai Motor, LG, and Lotte, has officially launched. These companies plan to fully mobilize their overseas management capabilities to support the government's bid until the host city announcement in November next year. This is expected to be a testing ground for the 'public-private joint' efforts emphasized by the Yoon Seok-yeol administration since its inception.

The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) announced on the 31st at 3 p.m. that it held the '2030 Busan World Expo Bid Support Private Committee Launch Ceremony' at the Busan International Exhibition & Convention Center. The launch ceremony was attended by key figures from the new government, business leaders, senior officials, and politicians. From the business community, attendees included KCCI Chairman Chey Tae-won, Korea International Trade Association Chairman Koo Ja-yeol, Samsung Electronics President Lee In-yong, Hyundai Motor President Gong Young-woon, SK SV (Social Value) Chairman Lee Hyung-hee, LG President Ha Beom-jong, Lotte Holdings Vice Chairman Lee Dong-woo, POSCO President Jung Tak, Hanwha President Kim Seung-mo, GS Construction President Woo Moo-hyun, Hyundai Heavy Industries Group Vice Chairman Ga Sam-hyun, Shinsegae Emart CEO Kang Hee-seok, CJ ENM CEO Kang Ho-sung, among others. Government officials included Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Lee Chang-yang, Minister of Foreign Affairs Park Jin, Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Cho Seung-hwan, Presidential Office Policy Coordination Officer Jang Sung-min, Senior Secretary for Economic Affairs Choi Sang-mok, 2nd Vice Minister of Strategy and Finance Choi Sang-dae, and BIE Cooperation Ambassador Kwon Yong-woo. Politicians such as National Assembly Bid Support Special Committee Chairman Seo Byung-soo, Bid Support Special Committee Secretary Ahn Byung-gil, and Transition Committee Busan Expo Task Force Team Leader Lee Heon-seung also participated.

11 Companies Centered on Chey Tae-won and 72 Organizations 'Fully Mobilized'

After the COVID-19 vaccine development site meeting held on the 25th of last month at SK Bioscience in Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol (left) is seen greeting SK Bioscience employees together with Choi Tae-won, Chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and SK Group. Photo by the Transition Team Press Corps

The newly launched private committee is the official partner of the government bid committee under the Prime Minister's Office, which will be established next month. KCCI Chairman Chey Tae-won will serve as the private committee chairman. Chairman Chey will also co-chair the government committee under the Prime Minister's Office alongside Prime Minister Han Duck-soo. As of this date, the private committee includes 11 companies: Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor, SK, LG, Lotte, POSCO, Hanwha, GS, Hyundai Heavy Industries Group, Shinsegae, and CJ, as well as 72 chambers of commerce nationwide and overseas Korean business associations. These organizations will participate in domestic and international support activities.

The KCCI, which serves as the secretariat for the private committee, stated, "After the resolution rally held at the Busan Chamber of Commerce last month, we have been preparing to form the private committee. By next month, we plan to expand participating companies centered on those with global networks and prepare detailed strategies to intensify bid activities."

'Public-Private Joint' Testing Ground... 'One Team' with the Government

Samsung and Hyundai Motor Group have hosted global events such as the Olympics. The Busan Expo Private Committee stated that they will mobilize a global network, including this kind of 'sports diplomacy,' to secure the hosting rights for the 2030 Busan Expo. (Image source=Yonhap News)

Coinciding with the launch ceremony, the 'Busan Expo Bid Strategy Meeting' was also held that day. The plan is to capture global support through the 'public-private joint' model emphasized by Chairman Chey and the government. The KCCI described this as the 'Korea One Team.' They plan to mobilize the capabilities of the world's 10th largest export powerhouse. Each company will select key countries to focus on for negotiation activities. They intend to exert all efforts, including government diplomacy and 'private diplomacy.' Delegations will be sent to Africa and developing countries, and government-business roundtables will also be held. They will utilize each company's distribution networks, sports teams, and promotional centers to promote the bid domestically and internationally.

Samsung Electronics President Lee In-yong said, "Samsung will actively utilize its global infrastructure and network to fully support the government and the bid committee to successfully secure the Busan Expo," emphasizing, "We will support the application of Samsung's future advanced technologies such as 6G, robotics, metaverse, augmented reality/virtual reality (AR/VR)." Hyundai Motor President Gong Young-woon stated, "Based on our experience in promoting the Yeosu Expo bid, Hyundai Motor has established and is operating a dedicated group-level bid support organization and will do its best to secure the Busan Expo," adding, "We will strengthen support for negotiations with BIE member countries by leveraging our global network." CJ ENM CEO Kang Ho-sung said, "We will fully leverage globally acclaimed Korean Wave content to support the bid," and added, "We will devise and implement plans to promote Busan's competitive assets such as the Busan International Film Festival, fireworks festival, webtoons, games, and virtual reality content worldwide."

Meanwhile, immediately after the bid strategy meeting, the Busan Expo Youth Global Supporters Group presented Chairman Chey Tae-won and key figures with promotional badges and bid support boards featuring the logo of the 'Busan Expo,' symbolizing the world's great transformation as waves of the sea.

Economic Impact of 61 Trillion Won... Surpass Italy and Saudi Arabia

Mohammed bin Salman, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia. He also serves as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense. (Image source=Reuters Yonhap News)

The host city for the 'world's top three international events,' the 2030 Expo, which is expected to generate an economic effect of 61 trillion won, will be decided at the BIE General Assembly in Paris, France, in November next year. The 170 BIE member countries will select the host city by secret ballot. The competitors are Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, and Rome, the capital of Italy. Odesa, Ukraine, also applied, but it is widely believed to be difficult due to the war and other factors.

The 2020 Expo was awarded to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, after the third round of voting, defeating Russia's Yekaterinburg 116 to 47. The 2025 Expo was awarded to Osaka, Japan, after the second round of voting, defeating Yekaterinburg 92 to 61.

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