A City and A Company for the Future
To say South Jeolla (Jeonnam) has changed a lot in the last five years is an understatement. Once primarily an agricultural region, the province has historically lagged behind other parts of the country in terms of investment and development. To look at South Jeolla’s countryside now and its cities with towering new apartment blocks, a new modern international airport, and a recently finished high-speed KTX train line to Seoul, one would be hard pressed to call the region anything but contemporary with other metropolitan areas in Korea. Among the various development projects spurred over the past few years, one of the most visible and talked about has been the Gwangju-Jeonnam Innovation City in Naju.
Started as a policy during the presidency of Roh Moo-hyun to decentralize the Seoul capital area and to increase investment in other regions of the country, the Innovation City has seen its fair share of controversy over the past decade of planning, construction, and finally opening. There has been a good amount of expectation in the follow through of this huge government project which promises to boost the local economy and to integrate South Jeolla, which has long felt itself to be neglected, more fully into the larger Korean economy. President Roh’s project, which has been seen by many in South Jeolla as a sign of Roh’s support of the province, has also been the target of criticism for its hefty price tag and aggressive development of what was once an undulating landscape of farms, villages, and pear orchards.
Bitgaram, as the Innovation City is also called, is a pure Korean word that conjures up light flowing outwards from this model of urban planning and environmentally friendly architecture. The centerpiece of this city of the future is the glittering tower complex that now houses the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO). Since the middle of last year, this government-run company, which provides 93% of Korea’s electricity, has called Naju its home. Last month, representatives from the Gwangju International Center and Gwangju News met with Cho Hwan-eik, President and CEO of KEPCO, in a luminous 30th floor conference room for an informative discussion about his company and its move to South Jeolla. Dr. Cho, as he appropriately can be called given he has earned a Ph.D. in business administration, has had an illustrious career as a civil servant and was the head of the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) before taking over the helm of KEPCO in 2012. He is optimistic about his company’s move and the effect it will have on the province.
Dr. Cho boasts: “Korea Electric coming to the Innovation City has plenty of meaning. Don’t look at it as the relocation of just a single public enterprise, but you can see it as if an entire Korean economic mountain has moved.”
Rather than just thinking about consumer and tax infusions that a large company brings, Cho encourages a larger vision that includes fostering new enterprises and talented workers, as well as supporting universities to increase electrical engineering departments and other energy related divisions.
“KEPCO, 100 days after moving here, has really plunged into making the Bitgaram Energy Valley and little by little visible results are being made. We have presented a plan to attract 500 energy enterprises to this location and to increase the number of talented people. Also, on a tangible note, on the 9th of last month at Naju City Hall there was an event to celebrate the cooperative agreement with the first enterprise, Boseong Power Tech.”
The union of KEPCO and the Gwangju/Jeonnam energy program and the creation of the “Bitgaram Energy Valley” hopes to provide a model for other public enterprises as they consider integration into the provincial environment.
“The Bitgaram Energy Valley anticipates the promotion of three main areas: R&D and cultivating talent, the construction of an energy enterprise zone, and supporting special energy businesses,” continues Dr. Cho.
Through such efforts and creative networks with the local government, along with collaboration with other relocated electric “group” companies, the venture hopes to invest 10 billion won annually into projects such as renewable energy, Energy Storage Systems (ESS), electric cars, and university research centers. All and all the Energy Valley holds much hope and promise for development into the future.
Cho adds: “Korea Electric with the cooperation of other relocated institutions in constructing an electric IT cluster, collaboration with the provincial government in attracting small and medium-sized businesses, and the cultivation of regional talent pools alongside R&D, strength combined, will work to make the Energy Valley a global success.”
A Love Affair with South Jeolla
Concerning job creation in the region Dr. Cho anticipates the Korea Electric Power Corporation to function as an incubator and a supporter of human resources development through programs targeted at cultivating the best in local talent. Specific plans include reinforcing relationships with local universities and expanding research opportunities for Master’s and Ph.D. students from South Jeolla and Gwangju.
“Korea Electric will be a cradle for the cultivation of talent in a creative provincial society and the expansion of new enterprises through research at the academic and small to medium-sized business levels. Furthermore, by introducing energy focused human resource education programs to cultivate local talent and by supporting exceptional students in the region, we plan to activate a recruiting process that favors hiring the best in local personnel,” states Cho.
With steps in place to benefit South Jeolla and its citizens, many have found good things to say about Korea Electric relocating its corporate headquarters to Naju. From welcome banners, to kind words from restaurant workers at the company restaurant, employees at KEPCO have had a warm reception. As such, local businesses stand to gain from this boost to the economy by extending closing times and opening new shops and restaurants to cater to the corporate employees in the Innovation City.
Cho admits: “When I moved to Naju, more than anything else I thought the most important things would be a natural union with the local society and the stable settlement of our relocated employees.”
Transferring an entire company and its employees from Seoul was a cause for both expectation and concern. Especially for employees used to the life in Seoul and around the capital, the decision to move to Naju was big. But with efforts to smooth the transition to South Jeolla life, such as Namdo art and culture activities, people have gradually adapted and become happier with their new surroundings.
Cho asserts: “Now we are seeing stability as housing and working conditions were prepared without hindrance and we have consistently formed a sentiment in our company about being a model of a successfully relocated public corporation and have laid the foundation stone for the new one hundred years of the electric industry in Naju at Bitgaram.”
The vision of the Innovation City and the development of Korea Electric in Naju is ambitious and serves as a test for the relocation of other public industries. With cooperative agreements with partner companies, industrial research and development, cutting-edge technology, and human resources expansion, the city is poised to be a truly innovative leader in the energy industry. With the Bitgaram Energy Valley, Cho says this could be understood as making Naju into the “electricity capital of Korea,” and compares it to Silicon Valley in America, but with a creative economy specializing in the energy and electrical industries. If successful, the company and its employees are here to stay, and will grow roots in South Jeolla province adding to the local economy.
“It is not too much to say that as Korea’s largest representative public corporation, the success of Korea Electric’s settlement into the provincial environment determines the success or failure of the relocation of other public institutions. In order to ensure a safe and successful relocation the first button has to be well fastened,” claims Cho.
A Change of Vision
When asked about how KEPCO will supply an ever increasing demand of electricity from Korean consumers, Cho answered diplomatically admitting that while in the past couple of years there have been fears of power shortages, at the present the situation has improved and he stressed his efforts to maintain a stable energy supply while working to maintain and monitor power plants.
“In the long term we are designing efficient ways to use energy by extracting new usable resources nationwide such as expanding energy storing devices and undertaking a micro-grid system on Korea’s islands that supplies electricity through clean energy generation. We urgently need to use electricity smartly and to strive to conserve energy in our daily lives considering environmental costs and the cost of imported fuel resources.”
Looking towards the future, the company is focusing its capacity as an industry leader in new energy development at home and abroad. With 39 projects underway in 22 countries, KEPCO strives to be a model in unified energy development through advances in technologies such as smart-grid, micro-grid, energy storage, high-voltage direct current (HVDC), and new renewable energy. In addition to this impressive number of projects around the world and a variety of new technologies underdevelopment, Korea Electric is working here in South Jeolla on renewable energy projects, particularly on Jindo.
“Gwangju-Jeonnam is a region with good wind and good sunlight. There are also many islands. We have made Jindo Gasa Island a carbon zero renewable energy zone. Using sunlight and wind power to generate renewable energy with an affordable initial investment, the island has become independent and environmentally friendly with a stable source of electricity,” informs Cho.
Discussing matters closer to home, the CEO talks about his lifestyle changes and what it has been like living in South Jeolla. While living in Seoul, he and his wife often saw movies and went out to dinner, but now living in a new province he has had the opportunity to enjoy the local sights and flavors. He has visited Gangjin to see the home of Dasan Jeong Yak Yong and has eaten Hampyeong beef. Also, the company headquarters has opened its Hanbit Hall as the Bitgaram Movie Theater for local citizens and company employees to enjoy and seen three straight sellout crowds.
Talking about the distinctive South Jeolla taste, Cho says: “Honam food is really delicious. Using fresh ingredients and various side dishes, the food appeals to me. Especially, Naju gomtang is really delicious. When my daughter-in-law came to Naju and ate gomtang, the saying that ‘It is the best ever’ is true. It is like the region’s warm and sincere heart is infused into the food.”
Cho contrasts his love of the local food with prescriptions on how to bring Gwangju and South Jeolla up to speed with other international venues. Speaking from his perspective as an executive of a Fortune 500 corporation, he stresses the need for better hotels, restaurants, and facilities that cater to the global business community. He suggests that work, dining, and travel conditions do not meet the global standard and hopes to see a higher level of conveniences in the future, which will be conducive to fostering international business relationships. As these comforts increase, the province could attract more investment and more global-minded people.
Cho shares that “every Thursday and Friday [the company] sends thirty buses to Seoul and elsewhere to help our employees commute and see their families. But I tell them to invest in land here because the prices will go up and encourage them to stay. Hopefully, we will gradually decrease the number of buses as people choose to move here.”
With five-star hotels and celebrity chefs, corporate training events and conventions as aspirations, the globalization of South Jeolla seems inevitable. Let us hope that all the things that make South Jeolla charmingly what it is, are not lost in the shuffle.