9 Trillion Won Invested in Gyeongbuk This Year... EcoPro Materials, Recipient of 405 Billion Won Investment Attraction in Gyeongbuk

At the '2022 Gyeongbuk Investment Attraction Awards' ceremony, Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk Province (6th from the left in the photo), and Kim Soo-yeon, CEO of Ecopro Materials, who received the grand prize (7th from the left), along with other awardees gathered in one place.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Koo Dae-seon] On the 26th, Gyeongbuk Province held the ‘2022 Gyeongbuk Investment Attraction Awards’ ceremony at the provincial government multipurpose hall, attended by local companies, city and county officials, and meritorious public officials, awarding the grand prize to EcoPro Materials, a secondary battery materials company that invested 405 billion KRW this year.

Additionally, a total of eight companies received awards, including four excellence awards and three special awards.

EcoPro Materials, the grand prize winner, invested 405 billion KRW in Gyeongbuk this year and created 209 new jobs. Based on its production capacity of precursors, a core raw material for secondary batteries, the company established an independent domestic supply chain without relying on foreign sources, significantly contributing to strengthening the competitiveness of the domestic secondary battery ecosystem.

The company is also recognized for its significant role in securing leadership in the secondary battery industry, a future growth engine for the Gyeongbuk region. Established in April 2017, the company is headquartered in Pohang, employs 254 people, and is known to have annual sales exceeding 340 billion KRW.

Jahwa Electronics, which received an excellence award, is an electronic components manufacturing company headquartered in Cheongju. It decided to invest in the Gumi National Industrial Complex and carried out an investment of 103.2 billion KRW this year, creating approximately 265 new jobs.

Kolon Industries, another excellence award recipient, invested 211 billion KRW in the cutting-edge aramid materials sector. Hanjoong NS, a company based in Yeongcheon, also received an excellence award for its efforts in developing new investments and creating jobs in electric vehicle parts and energy storage system (ESS) fields through in-house technology development. DS Co., a domestic-return company that relocated its Chinese business site to Gyeongju, signed a memorandum of understanding with Gyeongju City in December last year and began operations in April this year, contributing to regional economic revitalization.

Woojeon GNF, which won a special award, localized nickel sulfate, a raw material for secondary batteries that had relied on imports, advancing the secondary battery materials industry and significantly contributing to regional economic revitalization through joint investment with the Hyosung Group.

NSB, a venture company developing nano fertilizers based on nanoprocessing technology, invested in the Gyeongsan Knowledge Industry District last year, expanding domestic and international sales channels. TPOEL, which started as a venture startup and is growing into a fiber-reinforced composite materials equipment company, invested in the Gyeongsan 4th Industrial Complex, contributing to corporate growth and regional economic revitalization.

The grand prize in the local government category went to Gumi City and Pohang City, which strongly support Gyeongbuk’s industries.

Gumi City successfully attracted large-scale investment from SK Siltron through one-stop investment attraction services this year, leading to a total investment attraction of 3.3942 trillion KRW in secondary batteries, semiconductors, and defense industries.

Pohang City attracted investments from excellent companies within the Blue Valley National Industrial Complex and signed memorandums of understanding for investments totaling 1.4321 trillion KRW with 14 promising companies, creating 1,995 new jobs.

Additionally, Pohang City’s Investment Support Division’s officer Lee Hwa-hyung and Gyeongju City’s Investment Attraction Division’s officer Kim Yeo-jin were recognized for their contributions and received grand prizes in the public official category.

Gyeongbuk Province achieved a total investment attraction of 8.8228 trillion KRW and created 11,469 new jobs this year.

In particular, in the semiconductor sector, SK Siltron (wafers) invested 1 trillion KRW, LG Innotek (semiconductor substrates) invested 1.4 trillion KRW, Hanwha Systems (radar) and LIG Nex1 (guided weapons) invested 110 billion KRW and 200 billion KRW respectively. Also, SK Materials Group’s Fortin (silicon anode materials) and CNGR (precursors, 1 trillion KRW investment) made large-scale investments in the secondary battery materials sector.

Lee Cheol-woo, Governor of Gyeongbuk Province, said, “Despite the domestic and international economic downturn, the investment attraction achievements this year were possible thanks to the dedication and efforts of the representatives and workers of investing companies, as well as officials from the province and cities/counties.” He added, “The province will continue to create a business-friendly environment to ensure that more globally competitive companies invest in the region, especially in future advanced industries such as semiconductors and secondary batteries.”

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