A raft of major investment projects are set to significantly boost the marine economy of the southern port city of Zhanjiang - already a leading commercial powerhouse for the province of Guangdong.

The bonanza comes in the form of a package of more than 77 billion yuan ($11.7 billion) in investments involving 33 projects.

They follow contracts signed recently between Zhanjiang government departments and a slew of companies in such sectors as industrial parks, renewable energy, finance, trade and logistics, education and culture.

The deals were wrapped up during the 2017 China Marine Economy Expo, which ran from Dec 14-17 in Zhanjiang.

Clockwise from top: The Zhanjiang government signs 33 investment projects worth more than 77 billion yuan ($11.7 billion) during the 2017 China Marine Economy Expo. Provided to China Daily; The marine economy expo is held each year in Zhanjiang, Guangdong province, since 2014. Chen Hong / China Daily; Zhanjiang plays a key role in boosting the marine economy of Guangdong. Provided to China Daily

One highlight was the signing of an agreement between the State Power Investment Corporation Guangdong Electric Power Co and the Zhanjiang city government to jointly develop an offshore wind farm in Xuwen county, the southernmost part of Chinese mainland.

According to the agreement, the offshore wind farm, with a designed capacity of 600,000 kilowatts, will require an investment of 10.8 billion yuan.

Elsewhere in Xuwen, the Zhanjiang government signed agreements with Guangdong Yudean Group, the biggest power generator in the province, to develop two offshore wind farms for about 12 billion yuan.

"Zhanjiang has rich natural resources and great development opportunities, which are now on a fast track for its economy," said Vice-Mayor Ou Xianwei.

He was briefing about 200 foreign delegates and buyers from 20 countries and regions at the expo, about the city's investment environment and business potential.

The Zhanjiang council of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade signed cooperative framework agreements with more than 35 foreign associations and chambers of commerce during the expo, to strengthen business and trade relations with the city its GDP totaled nearly 258.5 billion yuan in 2016, ranking it No 8 among the province's 21 cities.

However, the statistics also showed that the total output value of the city's marine economy was about 125.9 billion yuan last year, and the added value was 65.4 billion yuan, ranking it third in the province's marine economies.

In early December, the Guangdong provincial government released a long-term plan on the overall development of the province's coastal regions by 2030.

Zhanjiang has been identified as a sub-center of the province, along with Zhuhai and Shantou. They have been rated only slightly less important than the province's main centers of Guangzhou and Shenzhen, at a time when the development of the marine economy has been put on the top of the national agenda.

Index released

During the expo the National Marine Data and Information Service - the government funded public institution responsible for the management of national marine data and information resources - released its index measuring the development level, performance and potential of China's marine economy. It indicated that the main categories of China's marine economy kept growing, but overall growth slowed down in 2016.

The index came in at 124.5 in 2016, against the data benchmark of 100 in 2010. That was up less than 1.8 percent from a year ago, while the average growth rate was 3.7 percent from 2010 to 2016.

Further, statistics showed that the total output value of China's marine economy increased 6.8 percent to 7.05 trillion yuan in 2016, compared with the average growth rate of 7.9 percent during the 2010-16 period.

Figures from the organization also showed that the nation's marine industry employed more than 36 million people, accounting for 4.7 percent of the country's total workforce.

The organization's measure of the Chinese marine economy's development performance - one of the main categories - showed the sub-index up just 1.3 percent to 120.3 last year, while the average growth rate for the 2010-16 period was 3.1 percent.

In terms of development potential, that sub-index rose less than 2.5 percent to 133.7 last year, while the average growth rate for the same comparative period was 5.0 percent.

Growing transactions

The China Marine Economy Expo, the nation's only State-level comprehensive marine show, was first held in Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong, in December 2012.

It settled in Zhanjiang where it has been held annually since 2014. Co-hosted by the State Oceanic Administration and the Guangdong provincial government, the event has become a platform that has showcased China's latest marine technologies and achievements on a global stage.

More than 3,000 exhibitors from 63 countries and regions - including Australia, the United Kingdom, Norway, Canada and Thailand - attended the latest expo, compared with last year's 53 countries and regions.

It attracted 161 leading scientific research institutes and industrial associations, as well as 286 innovation companies from China and abroad, this year highlighting innovative developments.

They brought to the expo their latest technologies, achievements and new products in the fields of ocean energy resources, marine equipment, marine environmental protection, sea tourism, marine biopharmaceuticals, and sea-related modern services.

According to the expo's organizing committee, agreements and formal expressions of interest were reached during the expo, involving 90 billion yuan in combined investment value, a 105 percent increase on the year before.

Among positive participants in the expo is an executive with a listed company - which mainly develops advanced equipment and systems for seagoing vessels and multisensor systems for monitoring maritime and airport activities.

Sales manager Dai Zhiming, said his group displayed its latest technologies at the expo, including its intelligent radar monitoring system.

"We just set up a branch in Zhanjiang, which oversees our operations for the whole province," Dai said.

"The expo this year was more influential than in the past and we hope the venue will be more spacious and convenient in the future," he added.

(China Daily 12/19/2017 page12)