Daejeon 'K-Bio Lab Hub' Attraction Joined by Sejong and Chungnam

Daejeon Mayor Heo Tae-jeong recently attended the "K-Bio Lab Hub Daejeon Attraction Resolution Rally" held at the north gate of Daejeon City Hall, appealing for the necessity of attracting the K-Bio Lab Hub to Daejeon. Photo by Daejeon City

[Asia Economy (Daejeon) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Daejeon City has secured cooperation from Sejong and Chungnam to attract the 'K-Bio Lab Hub.'

On the 14th, the city announced that it recently agreed with Sejong City and Chungnam Province to mutually cooperate in attracting the K-Bio Lab Hub to Daejeon.

With Daegu City and Gyeongbuk Province also agreeing to cooperate in attracting the lab hub, the need to consolidate metropolitan area capabilities has emerged. At this point, the grand cooperative and supportive commitment among Daejeon, Sejong, and Chungnam is expected by the city to create a synergy effect in attracting the K-Bio Lab Hub to Daejeon.

Additionally, the city views positively that last month, nine government-funded research institutes including KT and the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, four universities including KAIST, four university hospitals including Chungnam National University Hospital, leading domestic investment institutions, and bio companies totaling 53 organizations pledged to support Daejeon's bid to attract the K-Bio Lab Hub.

Currently, the city has selected the ‘Daejeon Technopark Bio Venture Town’ in Jeonmin-dong 461-1, Yuseong-gu, within the Daedeok Research and Development Special Zone, and part of the ‘Hannam University Daedeok Valley Campus’ as project sites, and has signed a business agreement with Hannam University for the acquisition of the incorporated land.

In particular, the Bio Venture Town, which opened in 2015, surpassed a cumulative sales revenue of 1 trillion won within 10 years and has produced 46 bio venture companies, among which nine companies have been listed on the stock market.

Also, in 2019, it was selected as the nation’s first Bio-Medical Regulatory Free Zone operator and is currently promoting three demonstration projects including the ‘Joint Operation of a Corporate-exclusive Human-derived Material Bank.’

The Hannam University Daedeok Campus site is historically significant as the birthplace of the ‘Daedeok Bio Community’ formed by 14 bio companies in the late 1990s, marking the origin of the bio industry in Daejeon, and it has the spatial advantage of being adjacent to the Bio Venture Town, the city explained.

Meanwhile, the K-Bio Lab Hub is a project promoted by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups to discover and nurture companies related to new drug development such as therapeutics and vaccines. The project budget totals 335 billion won, including 250 billion won in national funds.

Daejeon has been fully committed to attracting the K-Bio Lab Hub even before the Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced the project, and recently, a resolution rally and signature campaign for attracting the K-Bio Lab Hub to Daejeon were held, mainly by civic groups. Approximately 220,000 Daejeon citizens participated in the signature campaign.

On this day, the city plans to submit the project proposal to the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. The ministry will conduct document, on-site, and presentation evaluations and is scheduled to announce the final selection of one local government as the K-Bio Lab Hub project site next month.

The selected local government will undergo a preliminary feasibility study by next year. The K-Bio Lab Hub will be fully operational after 2025 and will be operated through government funding until 2031, after which it will become self-sustaining.

Kim Myung-su, Daejeon’s Deputy Mayor for Science, stated, “Daejeon has steadily prepared in advance to attract the K-Bio Lab Hub and has completed thorough preparations for site selection. Above all, with Sejong and Chungnam agreeing to cooperate in attracting the K-Bio Lab Hub to Daejeon, the possibility of Daejeon growing into a world-class bio innovation cluster beyond the Chungcheong region has greatly increased,” expressing confidence.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.