Expectations rise among Korean companies that infrastructure 'social overhead capital' investments focus on underground works and tunnels. According to inews24 reporter.

Social overhead capital (SOC) project for employment and local economy expect to be activated after the Covid-19 crisis.  They say government executed about 30% of the SOC budget, in the first quarter of this year ahead of the general election on the April 15th. It has implemented 30% of the annual budget (46.7 trillion won), including railroads (6.4 trillion won) and roads (6,600 trillion won), and plans to execute 60.5% by the first half of this year.

Among the SOC projects, the taking existing roads underground and building new underground road tunnels. According to Park Yong-hee, a researcher at IBK Investment & Securities, this will be a trend for future. Daesimdo (the Great Depth) is a public-private joint project that, after passing through the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's private sector eligibility study, selects a business entity through a third party competition and enters the design.

inews24 reporter writes that according to IBK Investment & Securities, there are approximately 33 proposed major transportation SOC projects in the country. The total scale is 45,4480 billion won, of which the 'Central East-West Railroad Crossing' largest at 8.55 trillion won.

Five SOC projects scheduled in Seoul. Gyeongbu Expressway Underground Project (3.300 trillion KRW), Gangbyeon North Road Underground Project (900 billion KRW), Subway Line 2 Double Express Train (3.37 trillion KRW), Jungang Line Double Tracking, Gyeongbu Line Railway Underground Project (1 trillion KRW) 330 billion won), Western Wide Railroad Project (1.32 trillion won).

You see many underground projects. Many of tunnels will bored using tunnel boring machines (TBM). This is why Korea companies invest in underground technology. Remember HOBAN TBM cooperation with Germany company Herrenknecht to produce a Korean tunnel boring machine.