Guangzhou Development District (GDD) signs a memorandum of cooperation with the I.N. Frantsevich Institute for Problems of Materials Science, the NAS of Ukraine. [Photo/Guangzhou Daily]

Guangzhou Development District (GDD) has signed a memorandum of cooperation with the I.N. Frantsevich Institute for Problems of Materials Science, National Academy of Sciences (NAS) of Ukraine, according to an announcement made by GDD on Jan 14.

The two sides will team up in building a parallel laboratory for new materials and establish a Sino-Ukraine coordinated innovation center for advanced materials.

The I.N. Frantsevich Institute for Problems of Materials Science, the largest research institute in materials science in Europe, has been a global pioneer in the research and development of advanced materials in areas spanning nuclear power, aviation, aerospace, and the military.

Currently, the institute employs more than 800 researchers, including four members of the NAS of Ukraine.

The coordinated innovation center will conduct basic research, as well as explore the transfer and transformation of technological achievements in areas like new materials. It will also focus on cooperation with new materials companies in Huangpu to turn the center into an innovation platform for the research and application of new materials in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

The new materials industry is an important strategic emerging industry in GDD, as the district is home to more than 150 high-tech companies managing new materials, with an annual industrial output value amounting to 40 billion yuan ($5.8 billion).

GDD plans to invest 15 billion yuan in the next five years to support the development of the innovation center.