South Korea’s government has selected five materials, components, and equipment (MCE) companies with unrivaled technological capabilities as the next generation of “Super Eul” firms and will inject large-scale R&D funding to respond to the intensifying battle for technological hegemony and the reorganization of global supply chains.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) announced on the 6th that it held the 16th Materials, Components, and Equipment Competitiveness Enhancement Committee meeting at the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation, where it deliberated and approved three agenda items: the results of the third Super Eul selection, the approval of new MCE cooperation models, and the 2026 MCE competitiveness enhancement implementation plan.
The five companies selected as the third cohort of Super Eul firms are: Hanwha Ocean (core equipment for submarine fuel cells), Sunic System (AI-based autonomous OLED deposition equipment), EO Technics (ultra-high-speed laser heat treatment equipment), EcoPro BM (sulfide-based solid electrolytes for all-solid-state batteries), and Doosan Electronics BG (low-loss materials and antenna modules for satellite communications).
The Super Eul project is a strategic government support program designed to cultivate core companies that will lead global supply chains by securing world-class, first-of-its-kind technologies. Companies are selected through a rigorous four-stage evaluation process—concept proposal, technical verification, presentation assessment, and comprehensive evaluation—based on their proposed growth strategies and technology development plans.
Selected companies receive long-term R&D funding of up to 20 billion won (approximately $14.1 million) per project for a period of seven years or more. Including this third cohort, MOTIE plans to cultivate a total of 15 global supply chain core companies by 2030 to secure a super-gap in core technologies and lead the global market. Previously, Jusung Engineering, KCC, and Techcross were selected in the first cohort, followed by Amotech, Hwashin, and SeAH Changwon Integrated Special Steel in the second.
Moon Shin-hak, Vice Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, stated, “We will continuously foster MCE companies that remain unshaken amid global supply chain reorganization, and strengthen the fundamental competitiveness of the MCE industry through cooperation models that reflect the diverse collaboration needs of demand and supply companies.”
In addition, the government approved five new cooperation models for the rapid localization of core strategic MCE technologies. The MCE cooperation model is a collaborative framework between demand and supply companies that provides a package of support including not only R&D but also regulatory exemptions and policy financing necessary for commercialization. Notably, starting this year, the model has expanded to three types, adding the “ecosystem completion type”—where anchor companies directly design the domestic ecosystem—and the “region-led type”—which strengthens the cluster functions of specialized complexes—to the existing general type.
The newly approved cooperation models include the ecosystem completion types “next-generation glass package substrate” and “1000W-class EUV pellicle”; the region-led (inter-regional cooperation) type “factory-customized mobility platform”; and the general types “domestic SoC for vehicle infotainment” and “ultra-high-performance porous carbon for energy applications.” For these five cooperation models, the government will provide a total of 91 billion won (approximately $64.3 million) in R&D funding over five years, along with a pan-ministerial package of support including regulatory fast-tracks for chemical substance permits, financial and tax benefits, and demonstration evaluations.
Heo Jang, Second Vice Minister of Economy and Finance, explained, “As the battle for technological hegemony intensifies and major countries accelerate the reorganization of supply chains prioritizing their own interests, the strategic importance of MCE is growing even further. For core supply chain items, we plan to improve structural vulnerabilities through phased policy measures such as promoting domestic production, stockpiling, establishing overseas production bases, and diversifying import sources.”
The committee also finalized the “2026 MCE Competitiveness Enhancement Implementation Plan” to execute the second MCE Industry Competitiveness Enhancement Master Plan (2026-2030) announced last October. By the second half of the year, the government will establish a core MCE strategy map to specify R&D investment directions by technology and reorganize the current 200 core strategic technologies. The plan is to upgrade the core strategic technology framework by adding new technologies centered on innovative, challenging technologies with high future demand and industrial impact—such as artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced materials—while excluding areas where independent technology has already been secured.
Furthermore, the government will expand AI and digital-based demonstration and commercialization support systems so that technologies confined to laboratories can be quickly applied to industrial sites. It will build advanced materials demonstration infrastructure utilizing robot-based automated experimental environments and introduce digital twin testing environments that verify performance in virtual spaces. Additionally, it plans to dramatically accelerate the speed of materials development by developing specialized AI models for the bio, semiconductor, and secondary battery sectors and establishing public AI materials development infrastructure.
To expand MCE production bases, the “third MCE specialized complexes” will be newly designated in the second half of the year. The government will support win-win packages where central and local governments and anchor companies participate as one team, and significantly strengthen the wide-area cooperation system between specialized complexes. This measure comprehensively considers the direction of national balanced development and industrial transformation, such as the 5-Pole 3-Special Zone strategy and the Manufacturing AI Transformation (M.AX) initiative.
This Super Eul selection and the expansion of cooperation models are part of the government’s aggressive MCE cultivation strategy to secure leadership in future global industries by preemptively occupying world-class, unrivaled technological capabilities, moving beyond simple localization and import substitution. The government envisions building a supply chain that remains unshaken by external shocks through securing core MCE technologies and fostering the industrial ecosystem.