Construction begins on S. Korea`s Shanghai Expo biz pavilion

By Lee Joon-seung
SEOUL, Sept. 18 (Yonhap) -- Work on South Korea's business pavilion began Friday
at the Shanghai Expo grounds that will give local companies a chance to showcase
their latest advances in eco-friendly technologies to millions of visitors, the
government said Friday.
The pavilion will house products and exhibition materials from 12 South Korean
business groups, including such big names as Samsung Electronics, Hyundai Motor,
LG, SK and POSCO, the Ministry of Knowledge Economy said.
The three-story structure will incorporate design features of hats worn by
tradition percussion band members and will be built on 3,000 square meters of
land in the "D section" of the Expo grounds on the western shore of the Huangpu
River.
"The companies have agreed on the collective theme of 'Green City, Green Life'
for their joint pavilion that will highlight their prowess in environmentally
friendly information technology products and technologies," a government official
said.
He said besides state-of-the-art items that will be displayed, the pavilion will
show videos on breakthroughs made in so-called green IT.
Construction of the pavilion will be completed by the end of March so it can be
opened to the public May 1.
South Korean companies agreed to build the joint pavilion around July and plan to
spend 30 billion won (US$25 million) to build the structure and displays.
The outer walls of the pavilion are designed to be broken down after the
six-month-long exposition and used as shopping bags.
The 2010 Shanghai Expo is expected to be the largest registered fair ever, with a
record 192 countries to be present.
China is estimated to be footing around $4.2 billion of the bill for facilities,
with more than 70 million people expected to visit the fair that runs through
Oct. 31.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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