Hyundai Motor Group will establish an automotive research institute at the Seoul campus of Hanyang University.

The business group said Wednesday that it has signed a contract with the university to build a research center for developing futuristic cars.

The two sides will break ground for the establishment of the center during the first half of 2012, Hyundai Motor said in a statement.

By offering students and researchers high-end facilities, the two sides hope to foster specialists to take on core automobile technologies.

Hyundai Motor Group plans to actively invest in the institute under its business policy to expand industry-academy cooperation.

Hyundai executives have stressed that having high-end technologies is more crucial than any other factor in becoming a truly competitive carmaker.

“Via joint research and development activities with students majoring in automobile engineering, the center will play a significant part in upgrading our core technologies,” a group spokesman said.

By Kim Yon-se (kys@heraldcorp.com)