Busan City Pours Funds into Marine New Industry R&D

182 Billion KRW Support for Marine Industry Innovation Technology Development Companies Over 2 Years

Busan City Hall building exterior. Busan City supports research and development funding for companies in the marine new industry sector.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] Busan City has decided to boldly invest research and development funds in ‘marine new industry’ companies pursuing innovative technologies in the marine industry sector.

The city has been promoting the project ‘Creating an Innovative Growth Ecosystem for New Industries in the Future Marine City of Busan’ since last year to spread the research capabilities of public institutions in the marine and fisheries sectors to local companies and nurture them into advanced marine new industries. As part of this project, Busan plans to support R&D funds totaling 18.2 billion KRW from national and city budgets to Busan-based companies engaged in the marine new industry by next year.

Following support for 10 companies last year, 9 companies will be selected and supported this year as well. The advanced projects, which provide up to 100 million KRW in support, attract high interest from companies, recording a competition rate close to 5 to 1 annually.

Selected companies also receive support for patent-based R&D strategy analysis and industrial property rights acquisition processes in connection with the Korea Patent Strategy Development Institute, which is very appealing to companies.

The 10 companies selected in the first year of the project have been conducting the program for six months from December last year to the end of this month, and their results are expected to be released soon.

Five companies?Nara Space Technology, Harbor Max, Irem Technology Development, Unmanned Exploration Research Institute, and Lian?plan to file a total of seven patent applications with the support of the Korea Patent Strategy Development Institute. Telepix and Ocean Field recently applied for two patent applications based on the technology development results obtained from this project.

A total of 19 company representatives attended the workshop organized by Busan City and Busan Technopark on the 18th, brainstorming together.

One participating company representative said, “Marine and marine new industries have lacked technology development support until now, but this project feels like it has given us wings.”

A Busan City official said, “Once the ‘Busan Marine New Industry Open Platform’ being established in the Dongsam Innovation District is fully operational in the second half of this year, local companies, talents, and technologies in the marine new industry sector will gather to create greater synergy.”