Incheon-si (City) and the Incheon Free Economic Zone (IFEZ) authority inked a sales contract with Ajinomoto-Genexine Wednesday for an 11,000 square meter-land in Songdo, Incheon City.

Japan-based Ajinomoto established a joint venture with Korea’s biopharmaceutical developer Genexine in last November to invest a total of 35.7 billion won to build a new plant for cell culture media for biopharmaceutical production including 6.4 billion for land purchase.

The city will begin the construction next month, finish it in the first half of next year and then start commercial production in the second half of next year.

Domestic biopharmaceutical companies have thus far 100 percent relied on foreign companies for imports of cell culture media. If completed, the plant will supply its products to not only Korea but other Asian countries.

“The plant will have become the first manufacturing facility to develop and produce cell culture media, a core substance of biopharmaceutical products,” said Incheon Mayor Song Young-gil.

Source: Newsis (Feb. 14, 2013)

** This is the translation a Korean article.