The construction of a new international port in Saemangeum kicked off on Thursday with a groundbreaking ceremony in Gunsan, North Jeolla Province, paving the way to a boost of the local economy, officials said.

Planned to be built upon Saemangeum, a massive plot of reclaimed land along the southwest coast, the new port will induce the creation of 22,400 jobs, the Ministry of Land, Transportation and Maritime Affairs said.

The Land Ministry plans to pour 2.5 trillion won ($2.1 billion) into the project, which will be completed in 2030. The official English name for the new port has not yet been decided.

A crucial part of the Saemangeum Development Project, the harbor program consists of the construction of a 3.5-kilometer seawall, a 4.1-kilometer pier and an 8.0-kilometer revetment.

As an initial step, the government plans to finish the construction of a 3.1-kilometer pier and four berth container ports by 2020. The new Saemangeum port is expected to have 18 berth container ports and a 3.5-kilometer seawall by 2030. Once completed, the new port, located 280 kilometers south of Seoul, will be able to handle 17.29 million tons of freight per year.

The Land Ministry also said that the port, if completed, would be able to secure a 4.9 million square-meter tract of the surrounding land. Over 17.3 million tons of goods will be shipped in and out of the newly built harbor, which is almost equivalent to the amount being dealt with at the nearby Gunsan Port.

Development of tourist sites, recreational facilities and distribution camps will also be carried out on the sidelines of the project. The manmade, environment-friendly waterway, created between the new Saemangeum port and its seawall, will transform the area into a living ecological park, the ministry said.

The Saemangeum Development Project is a state-generated construction plan to build the world’s longest sea dike at 33.9 kilometers, which connects Gunsan and Buan, west of Korea. The government expects that the estuarine area will become an economic hub of Northeast Asia in business, industry and tourism.

Over 500 guests gathered at the groundbreaking ceremony, including Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik, Land Ministry Vice Minister Han Man-hee, co-chairman of Saemangeum Development Committee Cho Nam-jo and North Jeolla Province Governor Kim Wan-joo.

By Chung Joo-won (joowonc@heraldcorp.com)