The fruitful autumn harvest has past and the winter solstice is around the corner. In this gorgeous season of shifting from autumn to winter, Huadu has opened a new chapter. On the morning of November 19, Huadu District held a grand contract signing and plaque unveiling ceremony for major projects of the nation-level Guangzhou Huadu Economic and Technological Development Zone. The event was attended by principal officials of the Department of Industry and Information Technology, Department of Natural Resources, Department of Ecology and Environment, Department of Commerce , and Investment Promotion Bureau of Guangdong Province, and the People's Government, Development and Reform Commission, Bureau of Industry and Information Technology, Planning and Natural Resources Bureau, Bureau of Ecology and Environment, Bureau of Commerce, General Office of the Investment and Development Commission, and the Customs of Guangzhou, and the District Party Committee and the Government of Huadu.

5 major projects were signed and settled in Huadu

The five major projects signed, covering multiple fields, including new energy, new materials, and intelligent manufacturing, are all projects of new quality productivity in line with the future key development direction set for national economic development zones, and will inject new momentum into the upgraded economic development zone.

The first contract was signed for Huadu Green Low-Carbon Advanced Elastomer and Tire Research Institute, an academician-led project jointly invested by the People's Government of Huadu District, Shandong Linglong Tyre Co., Ltd., and South China University of Technology to create a world leading research and verification platform for green and low-carbon elastomers and tires. The Institute will build a performance test platform of national strategic importance for extra-load tires under extreme conditions; and focusing on the strategic development needs of the automobile industry and aviation industry of Huadu District, it will build an internationally leading green and low-carbon elastomer technology R&D platform cum integrated commercialization entity with the ability to independently undertake major national projects.

Another academician-led project is the GBA Green Hydrogen Industry Development Research Institute cum GBA Hydrogen Application Demonstration Base of the State Key Laboratory for Advanced Metals and Materials, a joint project of the State Key Laboratory of New Metal Materials at the University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beike Qinglu Hydrogen Energy (Guangzhou) Co., Ltd. and the Management Committee of Guangzhou Huadu Economic Development Zone. It will focus on the R&D and creation of key technologies and equipment in the field of green hydrogen production, build an intelligent manufacturing production line for nano-catalytic hydrogen production components, be committed to iterative development of revolutionary low-cost, low-energy consumption, and low-emission nano-catalytic components, achieve full range technology innovations and their commercialization from basic research and development at laboratory to industrial mass production, so as to inject the power of "hydrogen" into China's ambition of "low-carbon" high-quality development, and lead the development of the hydrogen energy industry in the world.

Contracts were also signed for three other major projects of 10 billion yuan level on the same day. The Guangzhou International Surfing Sports World project, having a plan to build a comprehensive surfing sports spot that integrates sports, leisure, commerce and residence, is expected to create about 4,500 new jobs, attract 300,000 tourists every year, and hold at least 10 large-scale or international surfing events in the next five years, which will help to promote the development of surfing culture in Guangzhou and even the whole country. Wanyang Smart Manufacturing Base Project aims mainly to provide customized factory buildings for small and medium-sized enterprises. Wanyang Group plans to build in the "Northern Growth Pole" area of Guangzhou a number of innovative industrial parks that integrate high-end manufacturing research and development, efficient e-commerce operation, intelligent warehousing and logistics system, proper production and living facilities, diversified financial service support and advanced smart park management system. The completion of the project will enable Guangzhou to further play its roles as international trade center, national advanced manufacturing base, comprehensive gateway, and important carrier of international science and technology innovation centers, and to make every effort to build a comprehensive manufacturing industry cluster empowerment platform in the northern part of the Greater Bay Area. The China Anneng Emergency Industrial Base Project will systematically place and implement six major engineering projects in Huadu to create and improve new highlands, new highlights and new business formats of Huadu's emergency safety management along the whole industry chain. It has huge potential in generating benefits from political, economic and social radiation, as it will bring to Huadu high-end professional and technical talents that match the development of the industry, in addition to extensive and diversified labor employment and significant economic benefits, and will influence and drive large-scale tertiary consumption. It is expected that it will help create a "Huadu model" and an "Anneng paradigm" of emergency management for China, so as to contribute Huadu experience to the emergency management of Guangzhou as a super-large first-tier city, and to give a boost to the "Huadu of the World" to lead the country in emergency management in the new era.

It is promising to seize major opportunities

And invest in Huadu

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the first batch of national economic and technological development zones in the country, and General Secretary Xi Jinping, in giving important instructions on the work of national economic and technological development zones, pointed out that in the new era and on the new journey, national economic and technological development zones should continue to stimulate themselves for innovation vitality and endogenous power, and undertake high-level opening up to promote in-depth reform and high-quality development.

As the vanguard of reform and opening up, the national economic development zones are one of the open platforms that are the most concentrated in industries, the most active of open economy and the strongest force for driving regional development in China; in a word, it is a powerful engine for economic and social development. Since the approval and establishment of Guangzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone and Zhanjiang Economic and Technological Development Zone in 1984 among the first batch of national economic development zones, Guangdong Province has built 8 national economic development zones and 56 provincial economic development zones, which is achieved with the care and support of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, and with the vigorous promotion of the Provincial Party Committee and the Provincial Government. The 64 economic development zones of Guangdong occupied about 2.6% of the province's land area, and recorded in 2023 a regional GDP of 2.1 trillion yuan, an import and export volume of 1.1 trillion yuan, an actual foreign investment amount of 7.65 billion US dollars, and a tax revenue of 334.75 billion yuan, accounting for 15.5%, 13.8%, 34% and 15.5% of the province respectively. They are now a major player in the opening up and economic development of Guangdong.

As a representative of the eastern region among the national-level economic development zones approved this time, Huadu Economic and Technological Development Zone has shown strong comprehensive strength. With 17 indicators better than the average of the national economic development zones, and having established an advanced manufacturing industry led by the automobile and parts industry, and an high-tech industrial cluster consisting of advanced materials, new energy, electronic information and modern logistics, it is the main playground of the northern growth pole of Guangzhou, the new engine of Guangzhou's high-quality development, and a source of major opportunities for global investment and business.

The successful admission to "Team China" has brought Huadu Economic Development Zone huge development opportunities. Huadu's move to take the opportunity of the upgrading of the Economic Development Zone to simultaneously hold a major project signing event under the theme of "international open hub and vibrant capital of the Greater Bay Area" is to release a strong signal to the entrepreneurs and friends: Huadu of Guangzhou now is completely equipped with platforms, resources and environment, and it is right time to choose Huadu, it is promising to invest in Huadu, and it is with unlimited prospect to walk with Huadu. 

Huadu sincerely invites all entrepreneurs to take a walk in and have a look at Huadu, positively embrace new development opportunities, and bring more projects and more resources to Huadu; and Huadu solemnly promises to make available to each project full-cycle service guarantee with the greatest sincerity, the best policy and the best environment, so that enterprises can invest and develop in Huadu with confidence and peace of mind.

Lay firm foundation for industrial development

Cultivate fertile pro-business soil for enterprises

Huadu Economic and Technological Development Zone is connected with the world through the airport and with the heart land of the country through land ports. The airport, freeways, expressways, rail transit, and national second-class port (Huadu Port) give it access to a rare three-dimensional "four ports" transportation network of air, rail, water and land in China, which is a superior condition for the development of hub economy, gateway economy and headquarters economy, making it an important strategic node in building the "Belt and Road" international supply chain configuration base and for the Greater Bay Area to radiate its influence to the north.

Three major transportation hubs, namely Baiyun International Airport, Guangzhou North Railway Station and Guangzhou International Port (Guangzhou Railway Container Center Station) , connection to more than 240 domestic and foreign destinations, 21 rail transits and 19 high-speed expressways, constitute a world-class comprehensive transportation complex and hub.

In recent years, Huadu Economic and Technological Development Zone has adhered to the concept of "innovation-driven"; focused on cultivating and developing new quality productive forces; and by attracting investments, strengthening industries, and promoting research and development pushed forward mutual improvement of industry and technology. As a result it has built a modern industrial system led by scientific and technological innovation and supported by advanced manufacturing, effectively consolidating the foundation for industrial development. The District has successfully attraction investment from 59 world-renowned Fortune 500 companies, including JD.com, Meituan, Power China, Saint-Gobain. ZF, a Fortune 500 company, has officially opened its first R&D center in South China - ZF Guangzhou Technology Center; China Power South, China Railway Fourth Bureau, CETC, China MCC5 and other central enterprises joined hands with Huadu; Marelli, Valeo and other leading auto parts enterprises continued to increase capital and expand capacity; and a number of unicorn enterprises such as Gokin, Didi Autonomous Driving, and Blue Ocean Robot have settled down one after another. 

Huadu Economic and Technological Development Zone adheres to the principle of "reform first", focuses on creating better business environment, improving mechanisms, streamlining services and providing better supporting facilities, and strives to create a more efficient, fair and transparent business environment to form a pro-business atmosphere. The project of Gokin, a photovoltaic unicorn, was successfully listed as one of the top 100 cases of business environment in China's development zones for its industry miracle of "starting to construct upon land acquisition and to operate in 75 days". At 4th Global Times City Investment Promotion Conference this year, Huadu District was awarded the title of "2024 China's Most Attractive City District for Investment", indicating the high recognition of the public on Huadu's production and living environment.

The contract signing event was followed by a plaque unveiling ceremony for the official opening of the National Guangzhou Huadu Economic and Technological Development Zone. The successful upgrade of Huadu Economic and Technological Development Zone to a national one is not only a milestone in Guangdong's 40-year history of opening up to the outside world, but also marks a new starting point for Huadu's economic and social development and opening up. The development potential is and the future promising.