Korea’s Chungnam Province to Receive First International Convention Center

Plans are underway for a new convention center in Korea, the first for the country’s South Chungcheong Province (Chungnam-do) region.

Chungnam-do announced the plans earlier this month, stating the province’s first international convention center is set to be built near the Cheonan-Asan KTX Station in the city of Cheonan, with an expected completion date of 2023.

Located directly south of Gyeonggi Province, Chungnam Province is an emerging hub of transportation, logistics and economy. The region’s key industries include display, steel, petrochemical and automobile industries, making it an attractive convention destination for related industries. Cheonan, the city where the new convention center will be located, boasts easy access to nearby regions, including direct access to Seoul via KTX train in under 40 minutes.

Chungnam-do announced on the 5^th that the construction of the international convention center recently passed the local financial investment review by the Ministry of Public Administration and Security. The need to establish a convention center in the region has been raised steadily in the past, as there are currently no large-scale convention and exhibition facilities in the province.

The new convention center will be built in the ‘Cheonan-Asan KTX station R&D district’ with exhibition facilities (9000 m²) and conference facilities (4768 m²) across a total of five floors. Inside the convention center will be one large convention hall, three mid-sized conference halls, and five small meeting rooms. Additional facilities will include exhibition halls, public relations centers, venture-education facilities, and restaurants. The province intends to finalize the plans in the coming months and will select a winning design through a competition in the second half of the year.

With the establishment of the new convention center, Chungnam-do expects economic benefits and regional image enhancement by attracting large-scale international events. The province is planning to attract both local and international exhibition projects and looks forward to increased job opportunities for the local community as well.

“We will foster the convention center as a B2B (business-to-business transaction) specialized industrial support center that links exhibitions, conferences, and investments,” said Jeong Byeong-rak, director of the Chungnam-do Future Industry Bureau. “We anticipate the construction will bring new vitality to the overall regional economy.”