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    Topic 2

    New Opportunities for ERICA

    Ansan Science Valley Designated as a Free Economic Zone
    Advancing To Becoming a Global Advanced-Industry Hub

    • Compiled by. the Editor’s Office
    On September 22, Ansan Science Valley was designated as a Free Economic Zone (FEZ) by the Free Economic Zone Committee under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. With this designation, it became the only FEZ in the Seoul Metropolitan Area to feature a transit-oriented development hub. Anchored by ERICA, Ansan Science Valley is the metropolitan area’s representative cluster integrating universities, and research institutes, including Gyeonggi Technopark, the Korea Institute of Industrial Technology (KITECH), the Korea Testing Laboratory (KTL), and the Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute (KERI). There are also a number of influential small and medium-sized enterprises. . ERICA will participate in the FEZ project both as a landowner and as the project operator.

    Fostering National Strategic Industries through FEZ Designation

    For many years, the City of Ansan has made various, ERICA-centered efforts to improve and reshape its local industrial ecosystem. One initiative that was initiated is the development of a global advanced-industry district focusing on robotics and manufacturing. With the FEZ designation in September, these efforts have gained significant momentum. In particular, FEZ-designated facilitates attracting promising companies by offering benefits such as foreign-investment incentives, land-use advantages, tax reductions, and other various forms of support. It also allows for the possibility of large-scale, mixed-use development.

    During the 145th meeting of the Free Economic Zone Committee in September, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy designated ERICA, national research institutes, and the Banwol–Sihwa National Industrial Complex as the Gyeonggi Free Economic Zone. The committee emphasized the region’s strong infrastructure that includes the university-industry-research ecosystem and residential environment as key reasons behind the designation. This reflects the committee’s view that the area has strong potential to develop into a future hub for advanced global industries. Because the academic-research-industry cluster and the Campus Innovation Park, both developed through ERICA, have played a driving role in achieving FEZ designation, Ansan Science Valley is now expected to become a global R&D-based business center that creates major opportunities for ERICA’s future growth.

    Strategic Development of Advanced Robotics and Manufacturing Industries To 2032

    Total project cost: KRW 410.5 billion, production impact: approx. KRW 2.2231 trillion, job creation: 11,849 persons

    Ansan Science Valley is home to more than 200 advanced companies including Gyeonggi Technopark centered around ERICA, and is also the only FEZ in Korea that includes a transit-oriented development hub in the metropolitan area. The approximately 500,000-pyeong district will receive a total investment of KRW 401.5 billion by 2032, and is expected to become an advanced-industry innovation belt that is home to a global R&D-based hub for robotics and manufacturing business. The ERICA site, beginning with the Campus Innovation Park, will spearhead comprehensive industrial development starting with the Urban High-tech Industrial Complex.

    In particular, the ERICA site aims to create a “Global R&D Integrated Hub,” accelerating Ansan’s transition toward focusing on more advanced industries by linking the university’s research innovation capabilities with related fields. ERICA has already demonstrated strong performance through initiatives such as Shared-AI-Robotics Education, and actively attracts global companies to the Campus Innovation Park. In addition, ERICA has solidified its standing as a research-oriented university through the BK21 4th-Stage Program, gaining widespread recognition is the process.

    The City of Ansan and ERICA have long maintained a close partnership in pursuit of regional innovation. The city’s administrative direction and ERICA’s emphasis on practical research and education have created powerful synergy, which is a key reason for the designation. As a result, this designation is expected to help the university serve as a stronger role model in terms of demonstrating how significant economic impacts can be generated and long-term development in the region can be promoted.