Water, Nature, and Humankind

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• 01 Agreement for Stable Water Supply to Yongin Semiconductor Cluster

  K-water signed on November 27 an agreement on water and power supply to secure stable water supply to Yongin Semiconductor Cluster. The agreement includes plans on water supply in different phases of cluster development, water sources including recycling of wastewater, cost splitting among different organizations, and cooperation for the promotion of the water industry. Yongin Semiconductor Mega Cluster, the world’s largest in size, will be built on a 21,020,000㎡ area. The cluster is expected to need 1,072,000㎥ of water per day. However, it is rather challenging to secure an adequate amount of water that meets the quality standards. In this context, the agreement will be a critical step forward in addressing the biggest issue of stable water supply. “Stable water supply is a key element of the basic foundation of the semiconductor industry. The government and K-water will work as a team, and we will do our best to make sure that the Yongin Semiconductor Mega Cluster project will be completed successfully by securing a stable supply of water," K-water president Yun Seog-dae said.

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• 02 A large-scale waterworks project in New Clark City, Philippines

  The Philippine government is creating New Clark City, a new town that can accommodate 1.2 million people, in order to cope with the rapidly growing population and lack of infrastructure in the capital city of Manila. In building a new city, water management is one of the most difficult challenges to deal with. However, the country is struggling with water management due to frequent droughts, floods, and other extreme weather events, and its water service coverage rate is a mere 40%. Majority of the population except residents in Manila depend on wells for drinking water.
  K-water agreed to work together with the Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) of the Philippines on planning the new town development upon BCDA’s request. With fairly good understanding of the local circumstances gained from its operation of Angat Dam, K-water has been working with KIND and other Korean corporations as One Team on specific development ideas, and it submitted a proposal based on the outcomes of the feasibility study it started last August. The total project cost will be around KRW 1 trillion, and the highlights of Phase 1—which will be from 2026 to 2050—are the development of water sources and construction and operation of water infrastructure including integrated waterworks and sewerage management.

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• 03 The first step in the development of global standards for AI water purification plants

  A proposal by Korea was approved at the meeting of ISCO/TC224/WG15 on waterworks and sewerage services on November 27, 2024, marking the first step in the development of international standards for AI water purification plants. As the new standards, the “Guidelines for AI-integrated Smart Drinking Water Service Management” define general specifications and other details for the use of AI by public and private water supply companies when providing their services. K-water plans to apply the AI water purification technology at the Nusantara Carbon-Neutral Water Purification Plant being built in the new capital of Indonesia. Furthermore, the new standards proposed by K-water will prove to be a useful tool for K-water in expanding its global business by performing technological diagnosis and providing consulting on how to introduce the new standards in countries that are planning a digital transformation in water management.

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• 04 K-water accelerates its expansion in the Vietnamese water market

  Securing clean water is becoming a major issue in Vietnam as the country is struggling with droughts and salinization amid the worsening climate crisis. On December 13, 2024, K-water signed an MOA with Vietnamese water treatment company My Vinh and GS Minh Hung-Sikico on taking over stakes in the waterworks and sewerage facilities that are purifying and treating the wastewater discharged from industrial complexes near Ho Chi Minh City. K-water will take over the stakes in these facilities as a means of participating in the project in order to lower the initial investment risks and explore the market in phases. Eventually, K-water will operate these facilities jointly with the other partners. K-water will transfer its water management technology and expertise and support the operation and maintenance of the facilities while working on developing a follow-up business model.

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• 05 K-water wins the grand prize at the 2024 HR Innovation Awards

  K-water won the grand prize at the 2024 HR Innovation Awards for Public Organizations. Organized by the Ministry of Personnel Management, the awards chose the theme of “achieving work-life balance and promoting an organizational culture of getting immersed in the job” for 2024. K-water was recognized with the award for its efforts to create a healthy corporate culture by addressing the difficulties faced by employees due to “career gaps” caused by child rearing. Specifically, K-water has introduced family-friendly working hours and systems to ensure zero career vacuum for employees who have infants and young children. For example, K-water is currently implementing a childcare-focused, flexible working hour system under which child-rearing employees can work 4 days a week every other week and work from home for 32 hours a month if they have a child who is 8 years old or a first grader. Plus, no discriminatory practice is imposed on employees who take maternity or paternity leaves, and nighttime childcare service is available at its daycare center. All these moves are the key elements of K-water’s family-friendly management, and K-water will further promote its family-friendly workplace campaign by exploring new ways to foster work-family balance.

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