Hwasun-gun Goes All Out to Attract 'K-Bio Lab Hub'... Candidate Site to Be Selected on the 9th

Published 08 Jul.2021 10:38(KST)

[Hwasun=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Ji-woon] Jeollanam-do Hwasun-gun (Governor Gu Chung-gon) is drawing attention as to whether it will succeed in attracting the ‘K-Bio Lab Hub Construction Project’ worth a total project cost of 350 billion KRW (250 billion KRW national funds · 85 billion KRW local funds).

According to the county on the 8th, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS) will make the final selection of the candidate site for the K-Bio Lab Hub Construction Project after the announcement evaluation on the 9th.

Five out of 11 local governments nationwide that passed the first screening will participate in the announcement evaluation.

The county plans to focus on highlighting the strengths of the Hwasun Vaccine Industry Special Zone, such as the development of preventive and therapeutic vaccines and immune therapy specialized pharmaceuticals, and business support infrastructure, and presenting measures to complement accessibility during the announcement evaluation.

In addition, together with Jeollanam-do, administrative efforts have been concentrated on requesting influential presidential candidates, members of the National Assembly, the MSS, and related ministries to select Hwasun as the candidate site for the K-Bio Lab Hub.

Governor Gu Chung-gon is making every effort to attract the project by utilizing personal networks in central government ministries and central political circles ahead of the final evaluation.

Recently, he also visited the MSS and strongly requested that Hwasun be selected as the candidate site for the K-Bio Lab Hub.

The K-Bio Lab Hub is modeled after the ‘LabCentral in Boston, USA,’ aiming to foster bio new drug venture companies such as therapeutics and vaccines.

The county and Jeollanam-do participated in the competition with the Hwasun Vaccine Industry Special Zone as the candidate site.

The MSS completed on-site inspections of 11 candidate sites nationwide that entered the competition by the 30th of last month, narrowed down the candidates to five, and Hwasun in Jeollanam-do, Yangsan in Gyeongnam, Cheongju Osong in Chungbuk, Daedeok in Daejeon, and Songdo in Incheon passed the on-site evaluation.

The Hwasun Vaccine Industry Special Zone has full-cycle infrastructure for vaccines and biopharmaceuticals, including research and development, preclinical trials, clinical trials, clinical sample and commercial production manufacturing, and certification.

The county expects to receive good results in terms of early construction of the K-Bio Lab Hub, ease of building and site acquisition, and economic feasibility.

Since the 7th local government term, it has been accelerating projects such as the National Vaccine Safety Technology Support Center, National Immune Therapy Platform, Biohealth Convergence Knowledge Industry Center, and Immune Cell Therapy Industrialization Technology Platform Project, which were successfully attracted.

The connectivity and scalability with the second biopharmaceutical industrial complex under construction are also receiving favorable reviews.

Governor Gu Chung-gon said, “The Hwasun Vaccine Industry Special Zone has infrastructure supporting the entire cycle of new drug development, making it the most advantageous condition to achieve the lab hub’s goals early,” and added, “We will do our best until the end to attract the lab hub construction project, which will be a turning point for Hwasun to leap forward as a hub of K-Bio.”