Oceans Ministry completes relocation to Busan under government's maritime initiative
Published: 23 Dec. 2025, 18:48
![An opening ceremony for the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries' headquarters in the southeastern city of Busan is held on Dec. 23. [YONHAP]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2025/12/23/1aad21ea-71b7-4bdf-a38b-247c80aac4c0.jpg)
An opening ceremony for the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries' headquarters in the southeastern city of Busan is held on Dec. 23. [YONHAP]
The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries officially opened its new headquarters in the southeastern port city of Busan on Tuesday, completing its relocation aimed at transforming Busan into a global maritime hub in anticipation of new Arctic shipping routes.
With the relocation, the ministry said it will work to achieve this goal by concentrating administrative, judicial, financial and industrial functions related to the oceans industry, a key policy task of the Lee Jae Myung administration.
The initiative is centered on making Busan a strategic base of Korea's maritime industry amid the envisioned expansion of Arctic shipping routes, expected to offer shorter and more efficient trade routes between Asia and Europe in the coming years.
“Starting with the relocation of the Oceans Ministry to Busan, we plan to swiftly implement follow-up measures, including the relocation of public institutions and shipping companies to the city,” Vice Oceans Minister Kim Sung-bum said in a press release.
Earlier this month, SK Shipping and H-Line Shipping, the country's seventh and 10th largest shippers, respectively, decided to relocate their headquarters to Busan.
![Vice Oceans Minister Kim Sung-bum gives a briefing on the Ocean Ministry's policy goals to President Lee Jae Myung at the ministry's new headquarters in the southeastern city of Busan on Dec. 23. [YONHAP]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2025/12/23/190b2808-9b88-4226-a59f-2cebddeb5269.jpg)
Vice Oceans Minister Kim Sung-bum gives a briefing on the Ocean Ministry's policy goals to President Lee Jae Myung at the ministry's new headquarters in the southeastern city of Busan on Dec. 23. [YONHAP]
In a policy briefing to the president at its new headquarters, the Oceans Ministry said it will push to establish a new regional investment corporation and a maritime court in Busan to support the initiative.
The ministry plans to begin pilot operations on Arctic shipping routes in 2026 and support the development of homegrown technologies to build container ships strengthened against ice and icebreakers by 2030.
The ministry said it will also work to boost exports of fisheries products in line with the rising global popularity of Korean food, noting that seafood exports accounted for nearly 25 percent of Korea's total food exports this year.
In particular, exports of gim, or dried seaweed, are expected to surpass $1.1 billion this year to hit an all-time high, the ministry added.
Yonhap
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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