A company founded by the Raelian Movement, a religious cult whose followers believe cloning is the key to immortality, has proposed joint research with disgraced scientist Hwang Woo-suk.

Clonaid and BioFusion Tech on its Web site Monday said its president Brigitte Boisselier has asked Hwang to collaborate in one of Clonaid's laboratories.

The company said Hwang was discredited because what he said on cloning technology was not in line with political and religious powers, adding the firm suffered the same fate when it said it produced the world's first cloned baby.

Clonaid has moved its laboratories underground since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2000 announced a ban on human cloning.