November 21, 2024

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Lee Dong-won (third from left), director of Korea International Trade Association's Gwangju and South Jeolla Province regional headquarters, poses for picture during a signing ceremony for a memorandum of understanding with the Gwangju Green Car Promotion Agency and MobiltiyFund in this picture provided by KITA on Tuesday. (Korea International Trade Association)

The Korea International Trade Association is ramping up its efforts to support the overseas expansion of local mobility companies in the Gwangju area.

On Tuesday, the state-run trade agency's regional headquarters for Gwangju and South Jeolla Province announced that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with MobilityFund, a German venture capital fund, and the Gwangju Green Car Promotion Agency to help boost the global competitiveness of local future and eco-friendly automobile firms.

MobilityFund, based in Hamburg, is a venture capital partnership that invests in or provides advice on mobility sector investments. It has experience working with major automobile companies like BMW, Daimler -- the parent company of Mercedes-Benz --Toyota, and other global brands such as Amazon, Hyundai and Uber.

The Gwangju Green Car Promotion Agency, an affiliate funded by the Gwangju Metropolitan City Government, provides extensive support to local automotive companies to foster the future mobility sector. It operates the Gwangju Future Car Industrial Complex in which local firms are located.

Lee Dong-won, head of KITA's Gwangju and South Jeolla Province office, expressed hope that the memorandum would "strengthen the global competitiveness of promising companies within the regional future car industry."

According to KITA, based on the memorandum, a select few companies from the industrial complex will have the opportunity to showcase their products at German mobility-related exhibitions in the second half of this year. Before that, KITA and the Green Car Promotion Agency will also conduct a demonstration project with the regional firms in Vietnam.

By Choi Ji-won (jwc@heraldcorp.com)
The Korea Herald