The Port of Pyeongtaek lies at the head of the Ansong River about 23 kilometers from the Asan Bay in Gyeonggi Province in South Korea about 64 kilometers south of Seoul. Founded in 940 AD when two districts were combined during the rule of Goryeo dynasty, the Port of Pyeongtaek achieved city status in 1986.

The Port of Pyeongtaek is home to one of South Korea’s naval bases. It is also duty station for a large number of United States soldiers. The government of South Korea plans to make the Port of Pyeongtaek an international economic center. Coincidentally, the United States Forces Korea, are locating in the Camp Humphreys area of the Port of Pyeongtaek.

In about 100 BC, when Korea was the Samhan Federation, the Port of Pyeongtaek was named Yeondalbugok. It was renamed in 475 AD, under King Jangsu of the Goguryeo Dynasty, to Busanhyeon. In 940 AD in the reign of King Taejo of the Goryeo Dynasty, Busanhyeon and Sujuimnae were combined to form the Port of Pyeongtaek.

In 1914, the Port of Pyeongtaek achieved the status of a county that contained 11 townships. In 1986, Port of Pyeongtaek county was raised by law to the status of a city containing two offices, 11 divisions, 40 sections, and six neighborhoods.

The Port of Pyeongtaek opened in 1986 as a top-order international trade port under Korea’s Harbor Law. In 1987, the Pyeongtaek Branch Office of the Incheon District Maritime and Port Administration was established.

In 1995, the Port of Pyeongtaek constructed two berths at the Song-ak Wharf, one with capacity for vessels to 30 thousand DWT and the other with capacity for 50 thousand DWT vessels. In 1997, four berths were built at the Kodae Wharf (Dongbu Steel) with capacity for vessels of five thousand DWT. In the same year, four berths with total length of 960 meters were built at the East Wharf, each with capacity for 30 thousand DWT vessels.

In 2001, two new berths of a total 480 meters were built on the West Wharf with a capacity for vessels of 30 thousand DWT. In 2003, the branch office was upgraded to the Pyeongtaek Regional Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Office.

In 2004, two berths were built at the International Passenger Terminal, each with capacity for vessels of 26 thousand DWT. In 2005, one more berth was added to the East Wharf with capacity for vessels of 30 thousand DWT.

Finally, in 2008, the office was upgraded to the Pyeongtaek Regional Maritime Affairs and Port Office.

As of 2008, the Pyeongtaek Regional Maritime Affairs and Port Office (Korean) is the port authority responsible for managing and operating the Port of Pyeongtaek. Lying at the deep-water end of Asan Bay, the Port of Pyeongtaek is a gateway to central metropolitan Korea where over half of the country’s economic activities take place.

In 2005, over 5900 vessels called at the Port of Pyeongtaek, including 2700 ocean-going and 3236 domestic service vessels. That year, the Port of Pyeongtaek handled over 42.5 thousand metric tons of cargo, including 24.1 thousand tons of imports, 10.5 thousand tons of exports, 7.8 thousand tons of coastal transport, and 140 tons of transshipments. The Port of Pyeongtaek handled 227.7 thousand TEUs of containerized cargoes. Of those, 111.1 TEUs were imports, 115 TEUs were exports, 624 TEUs were coastal transports, and 73 were transshipments.

The Port of Pyeongtaek is near large industrial parks, and further development is underway. Connected to the country’s transpiration networks, the Port of Pyeongtaek is well placed as a distribution hub for products entering Korea.

The Port of Pyeongtaek is closer to Chinese ports that any other port in Korea, located about 350 kilometers from China’s mainland. The port authority is making significant investments in expanding the port, with a development plan to the year 2011.

The Port of Pyeongtaek’s East Wharf, No. 1 Berth has alongside depth of 12 meters and capacity for 30 thousand DWT vessels up to 240 meters long. The berth handles steel products and coastal transportation. It includes a 96-thousand-square-meter storage yard.

The East Wharf No. 2-4 Berths at the Port of Pyeongtaek each have capacity to serve vessels to 30 thousand DWT and 240 meters length. With average draft of 12 meters, the berths are equipped with a 300-ton harbor crane, two pontoon facilities, and oil pipeline transport facilities. The berths serve cargoes that include automobiles (including Hyundai, Kia, and Ssangyong), containers, general merchandise like oxides and stone, and oils (including soybean oils and petroleum products. These East Wharf berths include a bonded warehouse of five thousand square meters and a storage yard covering 288 thousand square meters.

With average alongside depth of 12 meters, the Port of Pyeongtaek’s East Wharf Berths No. 5 and 6 each have capacity to handle 30 thousand DWT vessels to 240 meters long. Four super post-Panamax cranes and seven transfer cranes are available. These berths handle containers and palletized cargoes of agricultural products. The berths have adjoining storage yards of 192 thousand square meters.

The West Wharf No. 1 and 2 Berths can handle vessels to 30 thousand DWT and to 240 meters long. Average water depth is 12 meters, and these Port of Pyeongtaek berths have one 350-ton harbor crane and a 350-ton hydraulic crane. These berths handle container and general cargoes like wood and cement. The berths have a multi-purpose warehouse of five thousand square meters and a storage yard covering 267.4 thousand square meters.

The Song-ak Wharf Berths at the Port of Pyeongtaek have capacity to handle one 30 thousand DWT and one 50 thousand DWT vessel. Average water depths are from 12 to 14 meters. The berths are equipped with four LLC cranes and two BTC cranes, all of them 48-ton class. The Song-ak berths handle steel scrap and pig irons and general cargo. They offer a storage yard of 60.8 thousand square meters.

The Port of Pyeongtaek’s Kodae Wharf (operated by Donghu Steel) Berths No. 1 and 2 can handle vessels to five thousand DWT with draft of 7 meters and to 50 thousand DWT with draft of 14 meters. Handling steel products, there is a storage yard of 117.8 thousand square meters.

Privately operated dolphins handle petroleum products, liquefied natural gas (LNG), liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and raw food materials. The Port of Pyeongtaek’s Sand Wharf (Wonjeongri) is dedicated to marine and imported sands. It has three berths, each 110 meters long, available to 2-3 thousand DWT barges. Equipped with sand-handling conveyors and desalting facilities, the wharf has a storage yard of about 50 thousand square meters.

The Port of Pyeongtaek International Passenger Terminal’s Berths 1 and 2 each have capacity for vessels to 26 thousand DWT and average depth of 10 meters. The terminal also handles containers and has a storage yard of about 10 thousand square meters. The Port of Pyeongtaek has two large roll-on/roll-off ferries for the Korea-China route.

Pyeongtaek City strives to be a leading trade and logistics center for northeastern Asia with an eye to making the Port of Pyeongtaek an attractive, environmentally-friendly city. The city’s goals include creating a culturally and aesthetically beautiful urban community where both the quality of life and the quality of the city meet the highest standards.