[AJu News DB]
South Korea will embark on the construction of its first marina harbor on its east coast under a state-sponsored project aimed at attracting foreign tourists, officials said Monday.
Construction will begin this month in the southeastern country of Uljin, under a deal that requires an investment of 55.3 billion won (48.1 million US dollars) to build the Hoopo marina harbor capable of housing 305 boats and commercial facilities, said the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries.
If completed, Hoopo will become the hub of maritime leisure and tourism on the east coast, the ministry said.
Hoopo is one of South Korea's nine government-designated places to house marina harbors including Dangjin on the west coast. In May, China's state-run Liaodi Group suggested it would invest some 210.7 billion won to build a marina harbor in Dangjin.
South Korea has unveiled a set of measures aimed at developing its marine leisure industry that included measures to raise the number of leisure yachts and boats to over 30,000 in 2020 from about 13,000 in 2015.
Aju News Lim Chang-won = cwlim34@ajunews.com
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
