South Korea's Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF) released its 2027 budget proposal on the 1st, outlining a plan under which shipping companies that transfer to the Busan-Ulsan-South Gyeongsang marine capital area and build new eco-friendly ships will receive government support for the expense. The government will also back the construction of icebreakers for sailing the Arctic route, adjust fishing vessel sizes in line with the new fisheries management system, and create a coastal fishing vessel modernization fund to sharply reduce aging vessels while supporting newbuilds.

The plan signals how Seoul views oceans and fisheries policy as a growth lever for the wider economy: it channels spending toward regional relocation of shipping companies, fleet restructuring, autonomous shipping technology, and preparations for Arctic commercial navigation — areas where South Korea, home to the world's largest shipbuilding groups, has significant industrial stakes.

According to the MOF, next year's budget stands at 8.2636 trillion won, up 10.8% from this year's 7.4583 trillion won. The growth rate is the highest since the ministry was reestablished in 2013.

Most of the increased budget will be invested in fostering the marine capital area, transitioning the fisheries management system, and accelerating the artificial intelligence grand transition (AX) in the marine and fisheries sector. The allocation breaks down as follows: 3.9 trillion won for the fisheries and fishing villages institutional sector (+11.5% from this year), 2 trillion won for shipping and ports (+2.7%), 1.2 trillion won for logistics and other areas such as the marine industry (+10.0%), 500 billion won for the marine environment (+15.6%), and 900 billion won for R&D (+7.8%).

Vice Minister Nam Jae-heon of the MOF said at a briefing that the budget "prudently reflects funding for the full-fledged fostering of the marine capital area, innovation in the structure of the fisheries industry and the revitalization of fishing villages, and new marine industries that grow together with a clean sea."

Marine capital and Arctic ambitions

For the marine capital area, the government created a preferential policy for shipping companies that transfer to the provinces, newly allocating 12.1 billion won to support the construction of eco-friendly ships for relocating companies. Under this arrangement, the central government covers part of the expense incurred when building a ship.

A further 18.4 billion won was newly allocated to support preparations for pilot operations on the Arctic route, collect related data, and strengthen international cooperation. The government will also pursue long-term projects to prepare for entry into the Arctic route, including support for constructing polar-operating vessels such as icebreakers and ice-strengthened ships, and developing technology for icebreaking container ships. Interest in Arctic shipping routes has grown among major shipping nations as receding sea ice opens potential shortcuts between Asia and Europe compared with traditional routes such as the Suez Canal, though regular commercial transits remain limited.

Shipping and port competitiveness

The government also aims to strengthen the global competitiveness of the shipping and port industry. To lead the autonomous ship market, it created a new budget of 2.9 billion won to distribute autonomous navigation systems to Korean-flagged ships. The budget for developing full autonomous navigation technology (Level 4) was sharply increased from 6.3 billion won this year to 15.7 billion won next year. Autonomous shipping is an area where several nations, including Japan and those in Europe, are also investing heavily, making the technology race a factor in long-term maritime competitiveness.

Fisheries restructuring and exports

To enhance the competitiveness of the fisheries industry, the government will create a 394 billion won coastal fishing vessel modernization fund focused on reducing vessels. Where a new ship is built after scrapping, the government plans to support the construction expense. The vessel-reduction approach reflects a broader trend in fisheries policy of matching fleet capacity to available fish stocks rather than expanding catch effort.

With a goal of achieving $4 billion in seafood exports in 2028, the government will also expand export support. To boost exports of gim — a product so high in added value that it is called the "semiconductor of the sea" — it will designate K-GIM leading zones and build offshore smart farms and onland leased farms. The K-GIM leading zones will be selected later through a regional open call. South Korea is a major producer of gim (dried laver), which is both a domestic staple and a significant export item, notably to markets such as Japan, the United States and China.

The budget also includes a new 24.2 billion won allocation to stockpile dried gim. An MOF official said, "We plan to stockpile 450 tons, equivalent to 1% of total production, to ease the price burden of gim, which has become a staple side dish." The planned stockpile is enough for 10 to 15 days based on domestic consumption.

In addition, 9.6 billion won was newly allocated for the public operation system of coastal passenger ships, which takes effect next year, to strengthen the guarantee of transportation rights for island residents.

Enforcement and future industries

The government will expand investment in future growth marine new industries. As part of the national normalization project, it will invest 5.7 billion won to build a GIS-based public water surface management system for "illegal occupation and use management of public waters." A new 2.1 billion won budget was also created for a project to remove illegal fishing gear.

The budget to respond to illegal operations by Chinese fishing vessels was increased more than fivefold from this year. The MOF said it plans to invest 15.8 billion won to firmly respond to illegal fishing by replacing aging enforcement equipment, such as fast boats and communications facilities, used against illegal fishing vessels. Illegal fishing by Chinese vessels in waters near the Korean Peninsula has been a recurring source of enforcement pressure and bilateral friction for years.

Minister Hwang Jong-u of the MOF said, "Next year's budget shifts the growth paradigm of the marine and fisheries sector by fostering the marine capital area and innovating the structure of the fisheries industry, and it focuses investment on projects where the public can feel the results of government affairs," adding, "The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries will support the grand transition and great leap of our economy."

Source: ChosunBiz via Hellenic Shipping News