"If It Doesn't Work in Korea, We Have to Go Abroad" — Chey Tae-won's Remark Draws Pushback from Kim Min-seok, Who Says the Focus Should Be on 'How to Make It Work in Korea'

[Financial News]  Prime Minister of South Korea Kim Min-seok has publicly pushed back against Chey Tae-won, chairman of SK Group, after Chey said that if a future semiconductor plant cannot be built in Korea, it would have to go overseas.

According to business and political circles on the 11th, Kim shared an article about Chey's remarks on his social media the previous day and said, "Rather than 'if it doesn't work in Korea,' companies, the government and the political world should sincerely talk and work together on 'how to make it work in Korea.'"
Earlier, after attending the Nikkei Forum's "Korea-Japan Special Session" in Tokyo, Chey told reporters that plans to build additional semiconductor production bases were unavoidable because demand for semiconductors keeps rising. He added, "We will decide where and how to build after considering everything comprehensively."
When asked about the possibility of overseas investment, he replied, "Isn't it a situation where we would have to go abroad if it doesn't work in our country?" He added, "It may not be the case that we will build only in Korea." He also stressed, "We need to build in places with infrastructure such as power, water, land and people."

Chey's remarks are being interpreted as meaning that infrastructure and economic viability will be the top priorities in selecting sites for semiconductor production facilities. However, Kim's public rebuttal just a day later has turned the issue into a broader debate over semiconductor investment and balanced national development policy.
The situation is also linked to recent speculation in political circles about a possible semiconductor plant in Honam. Cheong Wa Dae plans to hold a meeting on the 29th, chaired by President Lee Jae Myung, with heads of major conglomerates to discuss ways to expand investment in regional areas. The government and the ruling party are reportedly reviewing the possibility of semiconductor investment outside the Seoul metropolitan area as a key agenda item for balanced regional development.
In political circles, speculation has been growing that large-scale semiconductor investment plans are being discussed, especially for Honam and the Chungcheong region. Min Hyung-bae, who was elected to the Jeonnam-Gwangju Integrated Metropolitan City, recently shared a conversation with Kim and relayed remarks to the effect that "whatever comes, it will come," fueling local expectations.
A document released by the Jeonnam-Gwangju Grand Transition Planning Committee was also reported to contain signs that investment attraction talks had been held with Samsung Electronics and SK Group since last year.

The companies, however, are cautioning against overinterpretation. Samsung Electronics recently dismissed the investment rumors, saying it had "no knowledge" of them, while SK hynix also said that "nothing has been finalized."
In particular, SK hynix is already building a 19 trillion won "P&T7 advanced semiconductor packaging plant" in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, making it difficult to flesh out a large new investment plan in the near term, analysts say.
Cheong Wa Dae is also avoiding confirmation of any investment rumors tied to specific regions, saying that "investment plans are a matter of a company's own decision-making."
y27k@fnnews.com Seo Yoon-kyung Reporter