The interior ministry and the local governments of Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang Province have signed an agreement to launch a new administrative unit modeled after the European Union targeting balanced regional development.

The establishment of this “special union,” announced on Tuesday, marks the first partnership of its kind among local governments since the central government announced a plan to support such initiatives last October.

The union will officially launch in January of next year with a 27-member council, nine from each of the three municipalities. The heads of the three governments will hold a rotating presidency.

The land ministry plans to oversee developments concerning interregional transportation networks, a wide-area bus rapid transit(BRT) system and the designation of distribution complexes in two or more regions.

The central and local governments agreed to pursue a comprehensive development plan that includes 30 lead projects and 40 long-term initiatives in the areas of automobile, shipbuilding and aviation industries.

The union seeks to become one of the eight largest economic blocs in Northeast Asia by 2040, along with the Seoul metropolitan area.