Shanghai's Songjiang district bets big on future industries

A Shanghai district is building an industrial cluster for commercial satellites and terminal applications with a planned area of 2 square kilometers, local officials said at a press conference on Tuesday.

The cluster, located in the Songjiang district of southwestern Shanghai, is projected to see its industrial value exceed 50 billion yuan ($7 billion) by 2030. This is part of Songjiang's efforts to address Shanghai's goal of accelerating the development of advanced manufacturing for commercial aviation, Li Lei, head of the district's economy commission, said during the press conference.

According to Li, more than 50 commercial satellite companies are currently operating in Songjiang, with a combined industrial value in excess of 20 billion yuan last year.

Commercial satellites, intelligent terminals and smart computing services comprise one industrial pillar in Songjiang which features the development of new-generation information technology. The other major pillar is high-end equipment, best represented by new energy power equipment as well as professional instruments and meters. The value of each pillar is now estimated at being above 100 billion yuan.

A new-energy power equipment industrial cluster is also taking shape in Songjiang. With a planned area of 1 sq km, the cluster has attracted 30 companies to date. While these companies generated more than 10 billion yuan of industrial value last year, the value is expected to top 40 billion yuan in 2030, according to Li.

Addressing Shanghai's deployment of future-oriented industries, Songjiang is setting up a 6G-based industrial cluster with a planned area of 2.4 sq km. Focusing on the integration of 6G, satellites and artificial intelligence, the cluster will accommodate incubators, proof-of-concept platforms, testing service providers and industry leaders. The cluster's industrial value is expected to reach over 100 billion yuan by 2030, he added.

According to Wang Huajie, Party secretary of Songjiang, the district's research and development investment intensity, meaning R&D expenditure as a percentage of GDP, reached 6.39 percent during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period. The majority, 89.5 percent, of the R&D investment came from various market entities, including private enterprises. A total of 83 foreign R&D centers are Songjiang-based, accounting for 10 percent of Shanghai's total.

The district's GDP topped 220 billion yuan during the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period. It is home to 1,758 industrial companies with a minimum annual turnover of 20 million yuan each, placing it ahead of all other Shanghai districts for the last four years running.