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According to Yonhap News,

Gimpo, Oct. 22 (Yonhap) -- Gimpo city government announced on Oct. 22 that it had signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) in Liaocheng, Shandong Province, China with the EV manufacturer Hanshin Motors, Zhongtong Bus, KYC Auto, CJ Logistics and Cube Energy to attract investment in Daegot District of Gimpo (E-City), which will be a part of the Yellow Sea Free Economic Zone.

Based on the MOU, Gimpo and its partners will actively cooperate for the designation of Daegot District (E-City) of the Yellow Sea Free Economic Zone and for attracting key anchor businesses in the EV industry. Zhongtong Bus (electric buses), KYC Auto (electric trucks) and Cube Energy (electric batteries) are companies championing the EV industry in China. Gimpo has laid the foundation for the preliminary designation of FEZ by finding potential partners in this strategic industry as well as attracting foreign investment.

Gimpo City has been making an all-out effort to attract EV businesses including battery manufacturers in a part of the effort to establish an industrial complex specialized in EV within Daegot District (E-City) in Gimpo.

After numerous meetings with overseas manufactures and with Hanshin Motors, which is a domestic developer and supplier of electric buses, Gimpo was able to attract partners in the EV industry. The Chinese partners and Hanshin Motors have proposed a CEVC (Commercial Electric Vehicle Complex) project covering not just the manufacturing of EVs and batteries but also their feasibility demonstration and display by investing KRW 244.7 billion in the project site that has an area of 166,300㎡.

"The project of building Daegot District as a part of the Yellow Sea FEZ will help Gimpo emerge as the center of the Yellow Sea region, promote the cooperation between Korea and China and promote a peaceful economy," said Mayor Jung Ha-young of Gimpo. "Gimpo will expedite the administrative process and provide the industrial site at an affordable cost to boost the EV industry," he said. Established in an area of 5,157,660㎡ around Geomuldae-ri, Daegot-myeon, Gimpo, Daegot District (E-City) Gimpo will serve as the center of new industries focused on EVs, cutting-edge materials and parts and intelligent machines that are needed for creating a test bed for the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

There are high expectations for the region’s FEZ designation as it had served in the past as the center of marine trade that connects Kaesong and Seoul and has excellent access to Incheon International Airport, Gimpo International Airport, Incheon Port and the 2nd Sudogwon Ring Expressway In Nov. 2018, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced the plan to additionally designate FEZs based on the "2nd Free Economic Zone Mater Plan," and Gimpo city government in late Sep. 2018 requested for the preliminary designation of FEZ through the Yellow Sea FEZ Authority. The government is scheduled to decide and announce the results of preliminary FEZ designation in late Dec. 2019.

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Source: Yonhap News (Oct 22, 2019)