Korea to Pass Chip Mega-Zone Law This Year, Suspend Fair Trade Act for Cluster Builders

South Korea moved to remove regulatory bottlenecks for a major chip buildout. The presidential office said a landmark Mega Special Zones Act will be enacted by year-end, creating fast-tracked regulatory zones for three national technology megaprojects. While the bill operationalizes a ¥800 trillion (about $564 billion) pledge by Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix for a chip cluster in southwestern Gwangju and the Honam region, it also suspends a key antitrust restriction: the prohibition on horizontal investment among holding-company affiliates. Without the act, industry analysts say projects face multi-year hurdles, including sequential environmental impact assessments and fragmented infrastructure approvals, plus the Fair Trade Act barrier for Samsung Group. President Lee Jae Myung linked the schedule to urgent speed. First, Gwangju Air Base must stop functioning as an airport; Lee ordered all military flight functions relocated by 2028, with power and water lines for the first two fabrication plants arriving by late 2028.