Global Bio-Pharmaceutical Company R&D Center Breaks Ground in Busan... Prestige BioPharma IDC Attracts to Busan

Groundbreaking Ceremony on the 21st for 34,000㎡ Total Floor Area in Myeongji International New City

Antibody Therapeutics and Future Infectious Disease Vaccine Technology Development with 200 Billion KRW Investment

A bird's-eye view of Busan IDC, Prestige BioPharma's R&D center.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] The R&D center of Prestige BioPharma, a global bio-pharmaceutical company based in Singapore, is breaking ground in Busan.

Busan City announced on the 20th that it will hold a groundbreaking ceremony for the Prestige BioPharma R&D center, Busan IDC, in Myeongji International New City, Gangseo-gu, on the 21st.

Prestige BioPharma is a foreign-invested company certified as a new growth engine technology business. The IDC is Busan's first bio-pharmaceutical R&D center with large-scale foreign capital investment.

Busan City has been making efforts since last year to attract this center by proposing sites and providing investment system guidance. The attraction was confirmed this May by signing a business agreement with the Prestige BioPharma Group.

The Prestige BioPharma Group, headquartered in Singapore, established its 100% subsidiary, Prestige BioPharma Korea, in Busan this year.

Prestige BioPharma Korea is building an R&D center with a total floor area of 34,000㎡ in Myeongji International New City, focusing on the development of antibody therapeutics and future infectious disease vaccine technologies.

Foreign capital investment amounts to 173 million USD (approximately 204 billion KRW), and more than 200 personnel, including master's and doctoral level researchers, are expected to be hired.

Additionally, a convergence cooperation model with local universities and research institutes will be established, providing a breakthrough for the bio-pharmaceutical industry, which is less developed compared to the metropolitan area. Once investment in the Busan region intensifies from next year, related investments are also expected to follow.

The Prestige BioPharma Group has been growing steadily since its establishment in 2015. Its Herceptin biosimilar, used as a breast cancer treatment, has completed Phase 3 clinical trials and is awaiting marketing authorization from the European Medicines Agency (EMA). A new antibody drug for pancreatic cancer, a rare disease with no treatment, is being co-developed with Dong-A University and plans to enter clinical trials worldwide starting next year.

Prestige BioPharma received certification for new growth engine technology-related business from the government in November this year, and full administrative and financial support from both Busan City and the government is expected.

A Busan City official said, “The attraction of a research base for the future growth industry of bio-pharmaceuticals to Busan is expected to invigorate the development of high value-added industries in the region and create quality jobs.”

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