Japan's Toray Industries to set up global R&D Center in Seoul

SEOUL (Yonhap) - Japan's Toray Industries Inc., the world's largest supplier of carbon fiber, will build a global research and development center in Seoul, the local government here said Wednesday.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Toray's South Korean unit, Toray Advanced Materials Korea Inc., to build the company's global R&D center in the Sangam Digital Media City (DMC) in western Seoul.
Under the MOU, Toray agreed to set up the research institute on a 2,430-square-meter plot of land in the DMC's high-tech industrial complex and invest 143.8 billion won (US$120 million) by 2020.
If the plan is realized, it would mark the first time that a Japanese company has built a global research center in Seoul.
The research center will focus on the study of carbon composites, information technology materials, fuel cells and biotechnology, the government said.
The company will also cooperate with the Seoul city government to help it achieve its goals of developing green growth engines, it added.