Gwangju Energy Valley Rental Housing Project Resumes... Woomee Construction to Supply 762 Units

Construction to Begin This Year, Move-In Targeted for 2029

Gwangju Urban Corporation and Woomee Construction are resuming the publicly supported private rental housing project in the Energy Valley of Nam-gu, Gwangju, which was once at risk of being suspended. Construction is set to begin this year, with the goal of moving in by 2029.

Woomee Construction announced on April 24, 2026, that it recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Gwangju Urban Corporation at the corporation's office in Seo-gu, Gwangju, to promote the 'Publicly Supported Private Rental Housing Construction Project for Energy Valley D1 Block in Nam-gu, Gwangju.' The signing ceremony was attended by Seungnam Kim, President of Gwangju Urban Corporation, and Younggil Kim, CEO of Woomee Construction, among others.

This project involves constructing a 762-unit apartment complex on a 36,313-square-meter site located within the Energy Valley General Industrial Complex in Nam-gu, Gwangju. Publicly supported private rental housing refers to a system in which private companies build and operate housing while applying rental conditions with a public focus. Residents can live there for 10 years at rental rates lower than those of the surrounding market.

Seungnam Kim, President of Gwangju Metropolitan City Urban Corporation (left), and Younggil Kim, CEO of Umi Construction, are taking a commemorative photo after signing a business agreement on the 23rd at Gwangju Urban Corporation to promote the "Gwangju Nam-gu Energy Valley D1 Block Publicly Supported Private Rental Housing Construction Project." Gwangju Metropolitan City Urban Corporation

This project will be implemented as a "fixed sale price type." This means that the future conversion price for ownership is determined in advance at the time of initial move-in. The main feature is that it reduces the burden of sharply rising sale prices after the rental period ends, which can result from increases in property values.

More than 50% of the housing units will be allocated to genuine end-users without homes, such as young people and newlywed couples. These groups will be given priority to move in at rental prices set at about 75% of the local market rate, serving as a stepping stone for homeownership. The aim is to enable end-users without homes to prepare for homeownership while living in affordable housing for an extended period.

Although Woomee Construction was selected as the preferred bidder for this project in September 2022, progress was delayed. This was due to prolonged approval procedures, as well as a significant increase in construction costs and interest rates, which undermined the project's profitability. After nearly a year of working-level discussions, Gwangju Urban Corporation and Woomee Construction have now agreed to restart the project.

Transportation conditions in the project area are also expected to improve. When the Gwangju-Gangjin Expressway opens in December this year, accessibility between downtown Gwangju and the southwestern region of Jeollanam-do will improve via Daechon IC. The travel time between Gwangju and Gangjin is expected to decrease from about an hour to around 30 minutes. For employees of the Energy Valley Industrial Complex, this will provide more housing options near their workplaces.

There are also mid- to long-term development issues in the region, such as the planned construction of the Gwangju-Naju Metropolitan Railway and ongoing discussions about the establishment of a unified Gwangju-Jeonnam Special Metropolitan City. Attention is focused on whether the Energy Valley area in Nam-gu, Gwangju, will become a new residential hub in the Gwangju-Jeonnam metropolitan region.

Woomee Construction has previously won or operated 15 publicly supported private rental housing projects nationwide. With this project, the company will add another publicly supported private rental housing site in the Gwangju and Jeolla regions.

A Woomee Construction representative stated, "We will utilize the extensive experience and know-how we have accumulated in various publicly supported private rental housing projects to ensure the successful completion of this project," adding, "We will do our best to contribute to the activation of the Energy Valley Industrial Complex, as well as to the economic development and housing stability of the middle class and young people in the Gwangju-Jeonnam Special Metropolitan City."

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