By Park Sung-ho, commissioner of the Busan-Jinhae Free Economic Zone Authority
Busan and South Gyeongsang Province stand at a pivotal turning point — one that could redraw South Korea's industrial map. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries' planned relocation to Busan is shifting the center of policy and industry closer to the ground, while global supply chain realignment and a changing logistics landscape are elevating Busan's strategic standing. The growing viability of Arctic shipping routes is accelerating the diversification of global maritime logistics corridors, reinforcing this momentum. What matters now is translating that momentum into real growth.
Busan has already proved its maritime competitiveness. Busan New Port handles roughly 77 percent of the country's container cargo volume, cementing its role as the backbone of South Korea's logistics network. As the world's seventh-largest container port and second-largest transshipment hub, it serves as a critical node in the global supply chain. Connected to more than 500 ports across over 100 countries, Busan has evolved from a simple port into a global logistics platform.
Yet a logistics structure built around maritime alone is no longer sufficient to meet the demands of a rapidly shifting global competitive environment. In an era where speed and added value determine competitiveness, the transition to an integrated sea-and-air multimodal logistics system has become an imperative. High-value industries — semiconductors, biotech, AI and robotics in particular — are increasingly dependent on air freight, and the world's leading logistics hubs have secured their edge by combining maritime and air capabilities.
Gadeok Island New Airport sits at the heart of this transition. Once completed, with a target opening of 2035, it will equip Busan with a sea-and-air integrated logistics system that combines the reliability of maritime freight with the speed of air cargo. This goes beyond a simple expansion of logistics capacity — it will restructure supply chains and fundamentally raise industrial competitiveness.
Alongside this, a concrete push is underway to expand the free economic zone in connection with Gadeok Island New Airport. The Triport Global Integrated Logistics District, to be developed in the Hwajeon, Songjeong and Noksan areas of Gangseo-gu, will link port, airport and rail in a single space, creating a new growth foundation where logistics and industry converge.
In the Gadeok Island area, plans are also advancing for an airport complex city that integrates air logistics, advanced industries and residential functions. In Geoje, a city behind the airport is taking shape: the authority signed an MOU with Geoje city earlier this year and a feasibility study is now underway. The project aims beyond a conventional support complex, targeting a self-sustaining urban model where aviation-oriented industries, corporate activity and lifestyle infrastructure are built together — making it a central pillar of the free economic zone expansion.
The southeastern corridor linking Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang Province is already South Korea's largest industrial belt, with manufacturing, service and maritime industries concentrated in the same region. Expanding logistics infrastructure here would maximize synergies across sectors. When logistics capabilities are layered onto a manufacturing base, production, retail and service integrate into a unified industrial ecosystem — a factor that decisively shapes corporate investment and location decisions.
Add Jinhae New Port, scheduled to open in 2040, and Busan and South Gyeongsang Province will complete a triport combining port, airport and rail. This is more than an infrastructure expansion — it represents an integrated industrial platform where production, logistics, retail and service are organically connected. That environment will serve as a core competitive advantage in attracting global companies and upgrading the industrial structure.
The Busan-Jinhae Free Economic Zone sits at the center of these changes, serving as the key platform linking industry and logistics. As companies and industries cluster on the triport foundation and a structure combining logistics and production takes shape, Busan and South Gyeongsang Province are positioning themselves to move beyond a simple logistics hub and become a global industrial center.
Ultimately, completing the triport is not merely a regional development project — it is an opportunity to diversify South Korea's growth structure. As global supply chain competition intensifies, a multimodal logistics system combining port, airport and rail is core national infrastructure that will determine the country's competitiveness.
Busan has proved its potential at sea; it is now extending that potential through the air. Gadeok Island New Airport is the linchpin that completes the triport and the starting point that transforms Busan into a global industrial platform. Its timely completion is the most realistic and decisive condition for Busan's emergence as a global hub city.
ook967@heraldcorp.com
