SEOGWIPO, Jeju -- China’s Greenland Group broke ground with the Jeju Free International City Development Center to construct a healthcare town on Tuesday.

Greenland’s 778,000-square-meter site will consist of condominiums, a mall, a restaurant serving mainly healthy dishes and a medical research and development center. They aim to complete the construction by 2015.

The state-run Chinese real-estate enterprise signed an agreement with Jeju Center, part of Korea’s Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs, to invest around 1 trillion won ($916 billion), Jeju’s biggest foreign investment for the establishment of its medical tourism hub.

Jeju has designated 1.5 million square meters of land to attract foreign enterprises such as Greenland as part of efforts to further promote the island’s Seogwipo as an international city.

Some 300 dignitaries and journalists from China attended the ground-breaking ceremony, including Shanghai-based Greenland chairman Chang Ok-ryang.

“I expect that the participation of world-renowned Greenland Group will contribute to the perfection of the project,” Jeju Center CEO Byun Jong-il said.

“Jeju Healthcare Town will help to improve the quality of life of all concerned by setting a new vision for medical tourism, including wellness and recreational tourism.”

Jeju Center and Greenland signed a memorandum of agreement last July, and the Chinese company’s plan to build its healthcare facilities in Seogwipo was approved by the Shanghai Municipal Government in September.

Soon after, Greenland set up a Korean subsidiary here to carry out its project.

The island has set out to create an environment where both local and foreign companies and hospitals can invest to develop their medical and leisure centers.

Korean hospitals such as Seoul National University Hospital, which inked an agreement in April 2008 with Jeju, is looking to take part in Jeju’s medical tourism hub initiative by operating rehabilitation and medical check-up centers.

Also, a consortium of Seowoo, a Korean hospital construction company, and China’s Jungdae Real Estate are in talks with Jeju to build a medical check-up center, geriatric and rehabilitation hospital, and recreational resort here.

By Park Hyong-ki (hkp@heraldcorp.com)