14 honored for contributions to overseas construction; 'Tower of Overseas Construction' awarded to 7 companies

[Financial News] Sixty-one years after a Korean construction company won its first overseas project, 14 construction professionals who have led overseas project wins will receive government awards.
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport on the 2nd, the ministry will hold the 2026 Overseas Construction and Plant Day ceremony at the Construction Center in Seoul on the 3rd, together with the International Contractors Association of Korea (ICAK) and the Korea Plant Information Technology Association. This year’s slogan is “Building the future beyond the world.” The event is intended to bring together overseas construction companies, the government and related organizations to announce Team Korea’s vision for the future. Around 500 people, including officials and award recipients, will attend, among them Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Hong Ji-seon, ICAK President Han Man-hee, lawmakers Chung Il-young and Son Myoung-soo, and the head of the Korea Federation of Construction Associations.
Overseas Construction and Plant Day was first held in 2005 to commemorate Hyundai Engineering & Construction’s first overseas contract, won on November 1, 1965, for a highway project between Pattani and Narathiwat in Thailand. It has been held every two years since 2006.
The decorations focused on contributions to opening up new markets. Following Executive Director Na, Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co., Ltd. Executive Director Baek In-hong, who opened new overseas markets including Mozambique LNG, and SGC E&C Vice President Lee Hui-song, who broke into new markets in the petrochemical plant sector, will receive the Bronze Tower Order of Industrial Service Merit. The Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport’s Commendation will go to 31 people. Recipients include Assistant Manager Kim Seung-hyeon of Korea Expressway Corporation, who helped Korean companies expand overseas and strengthen their competitiveness, including through winning a privately financed road project in Türkiye, and Team Manager Kim Eun-hwan of Samsung C&T Corporation, who successfully carried out projects including a semiconductor plant in Texas, United States. Seven companies were selected for the Tower of Overseas Construction based on their contract performance over the past two years, among other criteria.
Conditions in the overseas construction market are challenging this year. Cumulative overseas construction orders through the third quarter totaled $20.66 billion, just half of the $41.33 billion recorded over the same period last year. The base effect was significant because last year’s total included the Dukovany Nuclear Power Plant project in the Czech Republic, worth about $18.72 billion. Excluding nuclear power projects, the decline narrows to around 8.6%. However, as Middle Eastern clients defer investment decisions amid armed conflict between the United States and Iran, progress toward the government’s annual target of $50 billion remains at just 41.3%. Last year’s annual contract total was $47.27 billion, the highest since 2014.
In his congratulatory address that day, Minister Hong will commend the efforts of the overseas construction industry and outline the government’s support plans. He is expected to say, “To transform the overseas construction industry into a high-value-added sector based on technological expertise and global finance, we will invest 1 trillion won in government funds to establish a new strategic fund worth 3 trillion won. We will also systematically develop talent, including by establishing a graduate school to train specialists in overseas investment and development projects, and provide tailored support for our companies’ expansion overseas,” adding, “The government will work alongside the industry as one team to help its efforts bear fruit.”

[email protected] Jung Kyung-soo Reporter