South Korea’s Defense Ministry formally selected an area in Mangun-myeon, Muan-gun, South Jeolla Province, as the candidate site for relocating Gwangju Air Base, advancing plans for an 800 trillion won semiconductor and AI megacluster across Gwangju and surrounding regions. The committee meeting was chaired by Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back, while an earlier report described Muan County’s designation as final. The Cabinet approved 6 trillion won ($4.3 billion) in semiconductor support from 2027 through 2030 and exempted water infrastructure from a preliminary feasibility study. The 8.26 million-square-meter former military airport site could accommodate four fabs, suppliers and research facilities, with construction targeted for 2028, the first two fabs completed in 2029 and initial output in June 2030. Samsung Electronics and SK hynix are participating, and four fabs would require 6.3 gigawatts of power and 650,000 metric tons of water daily.