Shipping and airline giant Hanjin Group on Wednesday said it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Incheon City and Incheon Free Economic Zone to construct a medical complex in Songdo International City.

The Hanjin Medical Complex will be the first of its kind in the area and has been pursued by Hanjin as a means for giving back to society and also to pursue mutual growth in Incheon, where Hanjin Group has its roots.

“We hope the complex will eventually be known as a world-class medical facility, and also for it to provide Incheon Free Economic Zone with the necessary leg-up to become more global than ever,” said Lee Jong-cheol, the IFEZ commissioner.

Korea has increasingly invested in the medical service sector as more foreigners visit the country to take advantage of the high-quality yet comparatively affordable medical services.

Last year, more than 150,000 foreigners came to Korea for surgery and other medical treatment. The figure reflected a significant increase from 2009 when the number was around 60,000, according to government data.

A 500 billion won construction project for the Hanjin Medical Complex will start next year, to be completed by 2018.

It will involve building a sprawling medical facility on some 77,550 square meters of land that would house clinics with some 1,300 hospital beds, state-of-the-art R&D facilities and training outfits.

“Our investments in the future of the medical industry, such as bioengineering, would also contribute to the government’s “creative economy” initiative and create more jobs for the related sectors,” the company said.

By Kim Ji-hyun (jemmie@heraldcorp.com)