Ruling Party: "Conglomerates Had Honam in Mind from the Start" vs. Opposition: "Companies Never Said That"... 'Honam Semiconductor' War of Words

[Financial News] The ruling and opposition parties continued their dispute over the Honam semiconductor cluster project, one of the three mega-projects being pursued by the Lee Jae Myung government. The Democratic Party said Samsung Electronics and SK hynix had been considering the Honam region as a site for a new semiconductor cluster from the outset. The People Power Party, however, repeatedly raised suspicions that the Honam region had been selected as the site by the government rather than by the companies.
The National Assembly's Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs, and Startups Committee held a parliamentary audit of the Ministry of Industry at the National Assembly on the 6th. Kim Jung-kwan, minister of the Ministry of Industry, and other officials attended the audit.
The People Power Party targeted the Honam semiconductor cluster from the outset of the audit. Representative Seo Ji-young of the People Power Party said, "We requested 24 sets of documents from the Ministry of Industry regarding the southern semiconductor belt and the three mega-projects, but 21 of them have not been submitted. Also, regarding next year's semiconductor budget, please submit the documents related to the budget proposal submitted by the Office of Planning and Budget and the consultation process. I do not understand why these documents cannot be submitted. If they cannot be submitted to the committee members, why are we holding a parliamentary audit?"
Seo also stressed, "In particular, all requests to call witnesses from Samsung Electronics and SK hynix regarding the Honam semiconductor project were rejected. I want to know how this happened. We are not asking the busy chairmen to appear. Relevant officials should appear so that we can question them about the situation surrounding this enormous national project and the consultation process. We must determine here why the witnesses were not selected, whether the companies refused, or who blocked them from appearing."
Koo Ja-geun, the People Power Party's secretary on the committee, said, "President Lee Jae Myung announced the three mega-projects together with Lee Jae-yong, chairman of Samsung Electronics, and Chey Tae-won, chairman of SK. This project involves a large amount of taxpayers' money, yet documents are not being submitted on the grounds that they contain trade secrets. Since taxpayers' money is being spent, there is no reason for the government not to submit the documents."
Jang Chul-min, the Democratic Party's secretary on the committee, responded, "Consultations between the party secretaries regarding witnesses for the parliamentary audit have not yet been completed. Regarding Samsung Electronics and SK hynix, I have not heard a request to call people in charge as witnesses instead of requesting the attendance of Lee Jae-yong and Chey Tae-won. We will discuss the matter, including that point."
During the main questioning that followed, the People Power Party continued to press the government over the Honam semiconductor cluster. In particular, it questioned the background and procedures behind the selection of Honam as the site for the semiconductor cluster project.
Representative Cho Ji-yeon of the People Power Party claimed that government budget support for the semiconductor industry was disproportionately concentrated in Honam. She also raised suspicions that the selection of Honam as the site for the new semiconductor cluster had been a unilateral government decision made without consulting the companies.
Cho asked Minister Kim Jung-kwan, "Was the selection of the mega-project site fair? The government previously said that it made the proposal because the companies had first inquired about the site. Did the companies propose Honam first?" Kim replied, "There was such a thing."
Cho immediately retorted, "Our office contacted the companies from September through yesterday, the 5th. The companies consistently said that they had never mentioned a specific region first. According to what we confirmed yesterday, they also said they had never announced or finalized an investment plan in Honam. The issue is turning into a dispute over whether the government or the companies are telling the truth."
Yoon Han-hong, another People Power Party lawmaker, said, "I asked Samsung Electronics and SK hynix several times, and I understand that they submitted an evaluation report to the government stating that a Honam semiconductor project was impossible because power, water, and manpower were unavailable. Yet they said the government was moving forward while ignoring it."
The Democratic Party defended the project by stating that Samsung Electronics and SK hynix had considered Honam from the outset as a new site for a semiconductor cluster.
Democratic Party lawmaker Park Hee-seung said, "Before the announcement of the government's three mega-projects, including the Honam semiconductor cluster, the president of Samsung Electronics asked during a meal whether there was land in places such as Namwon, North Jeolla Province, that could accommodate a semiconductor cluster of about 2 million pyeong. SK also considered investing in Saemangeum in the past. The companies themselves calculated the costs and benefits, went through that process, and finalized Honam and Gwangju as the locations."
Park further emphasized the need to build the Honam semiconductor cluster, pointing out that once the Yongin National Semiconductor Industrial Complex is completed, establishing additional semiconductor fabs will be virtually impossible because of water and power constraints.
Democratic Party lawmaker Jeon Eun-su dismissed the various suspicions, saying, "The People Power Party is still raising controversy over the site selection, but several sites could have been considered during the discussions, and it is not important who first used which term. The most important thing is how quickly the project can move forward in terms of power, water, and the site."
[email protected] Kim Hyung-gu Reporter