[단독]Delivered to the Ministry of National Defense, Hyundai Motor Company’s “Samseong-dong new office building 105→50 floor change”

Hyundai Motor Company’s new GBC construction site in Samseong-dong, Seoul, under construction on the 17th. Reporter Kim Young-min

It was confirmed that the Hyundai Motor Group, which was trying to establish a 561m tall Global Business Center (GBC) in Samseong-dong, Seoul, has announced its intention to change the design of the construction of three buildings by lowering the height of the building to the Ministry of Defense. It is the first time that Hyundai Motor Company has gone beyond an internal review and disclosed a change in GBC design to government authorities. Hyundai Motor Company purchased the former KEPCO site for KRW 1.55 trillion in 2014, and attempted to construct a 561 m tall skyscraper and an annex building there for use as an integrated office building.

According to industry sources on the 17th, the GBC Task Force (TF), in which Hyundai Motor Company and Hyundai E&C participated, delivered an intention to lower the height of the building from 105 floors to 50 floors in a discussion with the Ministry of Defense in January this year. It also proposed a plan to modify the existing Handong main building into 3 buildings. By lowering the height of the building to less than 260m, Hyundai will not have to pay the Ministry of Defense to purchase the latest radar. A military official who requested anonymity said, “At the time of last month’s working-level meeting, Hyundai Motor Company announced that it was internally reviewing the change plan (50-story downward building plan).” Accordingly, the military temporarily suspended the plan for a new radar base to be built in the southern region of Gyeonggi Province.

According to the business community, the Ministry of Defense and Hyundai Motor Group have held regular discussions with working-level groups for the purpose of resolving operational restrictions following the construction of a skyscraper until last year. This is because if the building height of GBC in Samseong-dong is more than 260m, the Hyundai Motor Group received construction approval from the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Ministry of National Defense as a condition of paying new radar costs to the Air Force. Initially, the Air Force was concerned that “the radar may not detect the target properly due to the shadow of the GBC.”

Hyundai Motor Group’s GBC business overview. Graphic = Younghee Kim [email protected]

If the GBC height is less than 260m, there will be no problem with radar operation, so Hyundai Motor Company can reduce many of the consultation process with the Ministry of Defense and Air Force. As the height of the building is lowered, it is highly likely that GBC’s floor area ratio (ratio of gross floor area to site area), which was close to 800%, will also slightly decrease.

It is known that Hyundai Motor Company’s executives, including Chairman Eui-sun Eui-sun (51), have a consensus that “there is no need to overdo the construction of GBC” as they enter into new businesses such as autonomous driving and mobility. Hyundai Motor Company plans to invest 8.9 trillion won this year, 10% more than last year, focusing on electric vehicles and mobility. Hyundai Motor Company President Lee Won-hee announced at the end of last year that “from 2020 to 2025, a total of 60 trillion won will be invested in three major areas, including mobility manufacturing, mobility services, and hydrogen fuel cells.”

Hyundai Motor’s core future strategy. Graphic = Younghee Kim [email protected]

The spread of the new coronavirus infection (Corona 19) from last year was an opportunity for Hyundai Motor Company to reconsider its plan to establish the GBC skyscraper. This is because it has confirmed that it is possible to conduct non-face-to-face work through a video conferencing solution without having to gather in a large office building. Accordingly, Hyundai Motor Company plans to officially submit the GBC design change proposal to Seoul in the near future. Seoul is oriented toward design changes, but the Gangnam-gu Office is sticking to the’GBC original construction start’.

Reporter Kim Young-min [email protected]