Lotte Construction Signs MOU with Seongnam City for UAM Infrastructure Development

Lotte Construction announced on the 6th that it signed a business agreement with Seongnam City at Lotte World Tower in Jamsil to establish an urban air mobility (UAM) foundation.

Through the agreement, they will promote ▲review of UAM infrastructure (vertiports, demonstration sites, etc.) ▲securing air routes for demonstration and commercialization ▲seeking future-oriented development directions through improved social acceptance. Through this, they plan to mutually cooperate for Seongnam City's UAM demonstration commercialization and leap forward as a future mobility hub.

From the left, No Jun-hyung, CEO of Lotte Data Communication Company; Park Hyun-chul, Vice Chairman of Lotte Construction; Shin Sang-jin, Mayor of Seongnam; Choi Jin-hwan, CEO of Lotte Rental

Last May, Lotte Construction formed the ‘Lotte Consortium’ with Lotte Information & Communication, Lotte Rental, and others, and jointly submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to participate in the national demonstration project for integrated UAM operation, ‘K-UAM Grand Challenge Phase 1 (K-UAM GC-1).’ Unlike other consortia, most participants in the Lotte Consortium are Lotte Group affiliates, which is an advantage for smooth collaboration among group companies.

Lotte Construction is developing plans to build differentiated vertiports that allow safe use of UAM by linking with major hubs of distribution and tourism infrastructure facilities owned by the Lotte Group, and to provide UAM services connected to existing transportation networks. In particular, to operate vertiports safely, they plan to additionally conduct remote control, autonomous driving linkage, and noise/vibration measurement.

To this end, they are currently reviewing the feasibility of installing vertiports on top of major urban hubs such as Lotte Mall, Lotte Mart, and Lotte Department Store in cooperation with Lotte Group affiliates. If the project proceeds, they plan to provide transportation services to customers. Prior to this, in February, they signed a technology cooperation partnership with Skyports, a UAM vertiport specialist company from the UK, accelerating the establishment of optimal UAM infrastructure design and operation technology. Furthermore, they plan to continue cooperation with other organizations to build vertiports in complex transfer centers, mixed-use development projects, and smart cities.

A Lotte Construction official said, “UAM is attracting attention as a transportation means connecting ground and air and as a future mobility means, so since last year, we have formed a consortium and devoted ourselves to technology development such as vertiport construction,” adding, “We hope that with this agreement, UAM commercialization will be realized and Seongnam City can leap forward as a future mobility hub.”

Meanwhile, the Lotte Consortium formed to promote the UAM project plans to participate in demonstration flights conducted at the Goheung National Comprehensive Flight Performance Test Center. From September 2024 for two months, they will comprehensively verify the stability of UAM aircraft, communication systems, and the operability of vertiport infrastructure. Upon passing Phase 1, they will proceed to Phase 2 of the Grand Challenge, the final inspection stage for commercialization.

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