An aerial view of BMW Group R&D Center in Incheon's Cheongna / Courtesy of BMW Korea

INCHEON — BMW Korea has opened its new research and development center in Incheon's Cheongna International City, in a move to strengthen its capability for vehicle homologation and electrification technology validation here, the German carmaker said Monday.

Located in the nation's western port city of Incheon, the BMW Group R&D Center is built on 5,296 square meters of land. The single-story building comes with diverse research facilities, such as homologation, electric vehicle (EV) charger testing and research laboratories, according to the carmaker.

BMW Korea invested 12 billion won ($8.69 million) in constructing the R&D center. A total of 50 research personnel will stay at the facility to support the carmaker's homologation and product development of vehicles imported into the nation.

The company also pledged to bolster collaboration with local firms and research facilities so both sides can develop more cutting-edge and user-friendly services, such as navigation and voice recognition, for local customers.

"The BMW Group R&D Center in Korea will play a pivotal role in enhancing the products and services offered to our Korean customers, developing future technologies and supporting the collaboration between the automaker and its Korean partners," Daniel Boettger, senior vice president of development total vehicle at BMW Group, told reporters during its opening ceremony.

For BMW Group, Korea is emerging as one of the most attractive markets, as was shown by the steep sales growth of BMW vehicles here.

BMW Korea became the top-selling imported carmaker in 2023, with annual sales of around 77,000. This marked the first time in eight years that the company won the title amid its neck-and-neck rivalry with Mercedes-Benz Korea.

Korea is the fifth-largest market for BMW Group.

The opening of the new research facility also came against a similar backdrop, as the carmaker hopes to boost sales further by ensuring more of its vehicles are fully compliant with Korean regulations.

Key executives from BMW Group and BMW Korea pose during a ribbon-cutting ceremony for BMW Group R&D Center Korea in Cheongna, Incheon, Monday. They include Daniel Boettger, third from right, senior vice president of development total vehicle at BMW Group and BMW Korea President and CEO Han Sang-yun, second from right. Courtesy of BMW Korea

"BMW Group R&D Center in Korea will actively streamline the homologation process to provide more optimized vehicles, and we will also conduct comprehensive tests to make sure that our vehicles are fully compliant with Korean legislation before their official launch here," an official from BMW Korea said.

The R&D center will also serve as a key facility for the group's localization in the Korean market.

The company said it will collaborate with its German headquarters' design and engineering departments so the facility can develop a more sophisticated level of navigation, voice recognition, connectivity, charging and driver assistance systems, particularly for Korean customers.

BMW Group operates a total of 12 research centers around the world, including the United States, China, Japan, Brazil and now Korea.

BMW Korea also reiterated its willingness for co-prosperity with local parts suppliers.

In 2023, BMW Group purchased automotive components worth 6.53 trillion won manufactured by Korean suppliers. The group's accumulated purchases of parts from Korean firms also reached 30.78 trillion won since 2010.

The carmaker said it will keep deepening technological ties with local companies and support them to tap deeper into the global market.

"We will continue to invest in providing top-notch products and services tailored to our Korean customers, as Korea stands out as a key market for BMW Group, ranking as the fifth-largest market last year," Jochen Goller, member of BMW Group's Board of Management for Customer, Brand and Sales, said during the event to celebrate the opening of the facility.