Leading Pohang's Future with K-Battery to Seize the 'Opportunity Development Zone'!

Focusing on Attracting the ‘K-Battery Opportunity Development Zone’ Centered on the Secondary Battery Industry

Conducting Service for Establishing ‘Opportunity Development Zone Promotion Strategy’ and Strengthening Collaboration with Gyeongbuk Prov

Pohang City is focusing its administrative capabilities on designating a ‘Opportunity Development Zone,’ one of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration’s key policies to induce the relocation of metropolitan area companies to local regions through unprecedented tax benefits and deregulation.

Pohang City, which succeeded in attracting a secondary battery specialized complex, is striving to strengthen national industrial competitiveness and secure leadership in the secondary battery industry through attracting a special zone for opportunity development.

The Opportunity Development Zone is an area that supports large-scale corporate investment in the region by providing a package of tax and financial support, regulatory exemptions, and improvements in living conditions.

Pohang City is establishing the Opportunity Development Zone centered on new industries that will lead Pohang’s future, such as secondary batteries, bio, and digital industries, in the Pohang Blue Valley National Industrial Complex and Yeongilman Industrial Complex areas.

In particular, after being designated as a national advanced strategic industry specialized complex last July, marking a new leap from steel patriotism to battery patriotism, Pohang City plans to focus on creating the ‘K-Battery Opportunity Development Zone’ centered on the secondary battery industry.

To prioritize the selection of the Opportunity Development Zone, the city has proactively pursued a service project for the ‘Pohang-type Opportunity Development Zone Promotion Strategy’ since last year in accordance with the Yoon Suk-yeol administration’s national policy of strengthening local decentralization, and plans to complete the basic plan by the end of this year.

Additionally, the city is establishing a close cooperative system with Gyeongbuk Province, the applicant for the Opportunity Development Zone, and plans to operate a task force for the zone while maintaining an organic cooperation system among industry, academia, research, and government for the rapid designation of the zone.

Along with this, the city plans to launch the ‘Secondary Battery Corporate Council’ in October, involving leading companies such as EcoPro and POSCO Future M, as well as small and medium-sized enterprises, to strengthen win-win cooperation among companies from securing core technologies to mass production of products.

Mayor Lee Kang-deok said, “Local areas face the risk of extinction due to population decline and concentration in the metropolitan area,” and added, “We will do our best to attract the Opportunity Development Zone to strengthen new industry R&D, nurture and attract high-level talent, and improve transportation infrastructure and living conditions, making Pohang a sustainable city.”

The scene of the '2050 National Energy Independence Public Report' held on the 11th at the Pohang Culture and Arts Center Grand Theater. (Mayor Lee Kang-deok)

If designated as an Opportunity Development Zone, more than ten incentives such as tax support, regulatory exemptions, and financial support can be received. Companies relocating from the metropolitan area to local regions will be provided with tax benefits across all corporate activities, including income tax, corporate tax, capital gains tax, acquisition tax, property tax, and even inheritance tax on family businesses.

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