China-South Korea cooperation Illustration: Tang Tengfei/GT
Saemangeum is drawing attention again – this time because of Chinese companies. According to the Yonhap News Agency, a delegation of about 20 Chinese companies in sectors, including solar power, secondary batteries and information and communications technology, visited South Korea from Wednesday to Friday to explore potential investment opportunities in Saemangeum.
Saemangeum is a large area that South Korea has been developing for many years. Roughly a two-hour flight from Beijing or Shanghai, it has also figured in South Korea’s efforts to expand economic cooperation with China, with a China-South Korea industrial cooperation park established there.
Whether or not the visit eventually leads to concrete investment, the delegation itself is worth watching. Many of the companies involved are from emerging industries such as secondary batteries, areas where China has developed well-established supply chains. These sectors also overlap with some of Saemangeum’s development priorities.
China’s industrial growth is increasingly enabling more companies to expand overseas. In sectors such as solar power and secondary batteries, Chinese companies have built deep manufacturing and supply-chain capabilities in a relatively short span of time. As these industries have grown, some companies are also looking beyond China for investment opportunities.
This creates an interesting point of convergence: Chinese companies are seeking places to expand, while South Korea is looking to develop new industries and build the industrial capacity behind them. Saemangeum brings these two needs together in one place.
There is competition, but competition does not mean separation. Secondary batteries offer a good example. China and South Korea both have strong technological capabilities in the sector, yet the global supply chain is highly interconnected, with materials, components and equipment moving across borders. Companies can compete in some areas while cooperating in others.
That is why Saemangeum is significant. It provides a case to observe how China’s expanding industrial capabilities may interact with South Korea’s efforts to develop emerging industries.
The recent visit by Chinese companies suggests that industrial engagement between the two neighboring countries is becoming closer. By visiting South Korea to explore opportunities, Chinese high-tech companies are creating more direct connections with South Korean industries. Such engagement is taking place within a broader cooperation framework. According to media reports, China and South Korea previously signed a memorandum of understanding on deepening cooperation between their industrial parks, providing a basis for expanding industrial collaboration.
Saemangeum is not the only place where China-South Korea high-tech cooperation can take place, but it can become a useful meeting point. It allows Chinese companies to better understand South Korea’s needs and priorities, while giving South Korea a closer look at what Chinese companies are seeking. Through such exchanges, both sides can identify where cooperation is possible and where challenges remain.
The next step needs to address the challenges companies face and create better conditions for future investment, not only in Saemangeum but across South Korea.
This cooperation also comes as the two countries continue to expand economic ties. The China-South Korea Free Trade Agreement came into effect in 2015, and the two countries are now negotiating its second phase, which aims to further open services and investment markets. As high-tech cooperation grows, these discussions could help address practical issues and provide stronger support for cross-border investment.
China and South Korea are close neighbors whose industries are deeply connected. As both countries continue to advance in high-tech sectors, new opportunities for cooperation will keep emerging. Saemangeum offers a vantage point to observe this trend – and to see how cooperation can work in practice. For South Korea, the key will be whether it can create the conditions needed to turn these opportunities into real investment and industrial cooperation.
The author is a reporter with the Global Times. bizopinion@globaltimes.com.cn
