The Korea Institute for the Advancement of Technology's headquarters in Seoul (KIAT)

South Korea and Spain are teaming up to conduct joint research on smart manufacturing and future mobility as part of their agreement signed last year to bolster technology ties, according to the Korea Institute for the Advancement of Technology, an institution affiliated with the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, on Sunday.

In November last year, the two countries set up an industrial technology partnership committee and discussed possible areas for collaboration.

As a follow-up to the agreement, the two countries recently decided to carry out joint research work on smart manufacturing and future mobility. Under the partnership, each country will provide up to 1 billion won ($758,000) to fund related research and development for both of the new projects, which are scheduled to officially begin in September.

The joint technology development program is the first joint initiative launched by Korea and Spain, under which the two countries work together to select and evaluate designated projects with the goal of strengthening their strategic technological cooperation. Officials said the latest partnership could lead to further collaboration between the two countries.