Focusing on the front page of Nantong Daily | 1 project with a contract value exceeding 5 billion yuan, 5 new industrial projects with an investment exceeding 100 million yuan have started construction this year - Tongzhouwan Demonstration Zone is sprinting in the spring

A year's work begins in spring; all things start with action. Tongzhouwan Demonstration Zone, in the "springtime," is showing its determination to boost the economy with a sense of urgency and competition. Since the beginning of the year, the demonstration zone has signed one project worth over 5 billion yuan, two foreign investment projects worth over US\$30 million, started construction on five industrial projects worth over 100 million yuan, and completed six others.

Standing at the new starting point of 2024, with the spring breeze blowing and many opportunities at hand, "This year marks the beginning of a breakthrough in the construction of the Tongzhouwan petrochemical dual-circulation base and is a crucial year for the demonstration zone to make breakthroughs in major projects." Lu Zhong Hua, Party Committee Secretary of the Tongzhouwan Demonstration Zone, stated that they will firmly grasp the opportunities of cross-river integration and development towards the sea, and with a proactive attitude of competing in the river and sea, they will make every effort to focus on projects, cultivate superior industries, and increase the total amount. They strive to achieve a regional GDP that is 1.5 percentage points higher than the city's, an increase of over 25% in industrial taxable sales, and an increase of over 30% and 60% in fixed asset investment and industrial investment respectively. They will strive to deliver a model answer from Tongzhouwan on the path of striving for strength towards the sea.

Leading "Flagship" Enterprises Activate New Engines

Recently, the construction of the China Railway Fourth Bureau's steel structure industrialization intelligent manufacturing base project is in full swing, with workers carrying out steel structure hoisting operations. The project, invested by the China Railway Fourth Bureau Group, integrates research and development and production. It mainly engages in the research and manufacturing of supporting products for steel structure building projects, bridge steel structures, offshore steel structures, and tooling equipment. Upon completion, it will become a leading, first-class modern steel structure industrial base in China, with an estimated annual output value of 4.5 billion yuan. This project is also an important link in Tongzhouwan's efforts to expand its industrial clusters and build a high-end equipment industry chain.

Developing "flagship" enterprises and promoting the construction of major projects has been the underlying principle of the Tongzhouwan Demonstration Zone's development since its establishment. In the past two years, the demonstration zone has promoted a total of 15 major provincial and municipal projects, 11 of which have already been put into production. (Continued on page A4)

This year, the number of major provincial projects in the demonstration zone has reached a new high, with six projects selected: Huaneng Nantong (Tongzhouwan) 2x1000,000 kW large-scale clean and efficient coal-fired power plant, Fu莱特 solar photovoltaic glass and backplane, Tongzhouwan Liberte large-scale industrialized modules, Nantong Tongzhouwan Runbang high-end equipment and Lanshui offshore equipment.

Currently, these major projects in Tongzhouwan are making great strides: the main plant of the Huaneng project is expected to complete its structural topping out by the end of the year; the Fu莱特 project has fully started, and steel structure installation has begun in some workshops, with the first kiln expected to be fired and put into production in August; Liberte and Runbang projects are accelerating the approval of sea use and shoreline, striving to start construction in the second quarter; some buildings of the Lanshui project have been topped out, and it is striving for completion and production in the third quarter... continuously activating new engines for high-quality development in the demonstration zone.

Leading enterprises "lead the way," and chain enterprises "follow"—following this approach, the demonstration zone also relies on leading enterprises such as Fu莱特, Tianshun Offshore Engineering, and Huada New Materials, focusing on the three main industries of high-end marine equipment, modern textiles, and petrochemical new materials, adhering to the development of industrial clusters and chain-style layouts. Taking the Tongzhouwan High-end Equipment Coastal Industrial Park as an example, it has attracted 20 "chain" enterprises in shipbuilding and offshore equipment and new energy equipment, and a modern industrial cluster with a clear main chain and distinct characteristics is gathering and growing.

The growth of industrial clusters embodies the hard work and progress of the people of Tongzhouwan, and it also brings together the courage and determination to forge ahead. Lu Zhong Hua stated that this year, the demonstration zone will actively integrate into the joint construction of the Yangtze River Estuary Industrial Innovation Collaborative Zone, strengthen cross-regional industrial cooperation with southern Jiangsu and Shanghai, frequently conduct investment promotion "door-knocking actions," and integrate and superimpose the capital chain, innovation chain, industrial chain, and service chain to ensure that the total investment of newly signed projects will exceed 600 billion yuan this year. No less than 50 industrial projects worth over 100 million yuan will be started, more than 40 projects will be completed and put into production, and the amount of physical work completed will exceed 10 billion yuan.

Innovation and Upgrading Cultivate New Momentum

Behind the growth of industrial clusters, the driving force of innovation is clearly visible.

“We mainly produce upstream specialty amine chemicals and polyurethane high-end additive compounding, which are widely used in high-tech fields such as aerospace, high-speed rail, ships, construction, home furnishings, and chip manufacturing.” Recently, Hengguang New Materials (Jiangsu) Co., Ltd. is stepping up efforts to fulfill orders. Li Qiang, vice general manager of the company, is full of confidence: “Cumulative tax payments of 18.02 million yuan were achieved in January and February, marking a successful start and setting the tone for the company's rapid development throughout the year.”

Since settling in Tongzhouwan in 2016, Hengguang New Materials has continuously focused on the field of polyurethane auxiliaries, adhering to innovation-driven development. It currently holds 107 patents, invested nearly 30 million yuan in research and development last year, and has become a leading enterprise in the polyurethane auxiliary industry. The company has been recognized as a specialized, refined, and new small and medium-sized enterprise and a high-tech enterprise in Jiangsu Province, and plans to go public next year.

As enterprises make a strong start, government support is also keeping pace. In recent days, Su Ping, director of the Tongzhouwan Demonstration Zone Economic Development Bureau, led a team to visit strong sales enterprises and enterprises being cultivated and supported within the zone, encouraging them to establish technological innovation platforms and carry out industry-university-research cooperation. “The demonstration zone has formulated 13 lists, including those for industrial enterprises with over 100 million yuan in revenue, specialized, refined, and new small and medium-sized enterprises, and science and technology innovation enterprises. It continues to conduct enterprise visits and warm-up actions, striving to cultivate more than 20 high-tech enterprises this year, add more than 40 high-quality "intelligent transformation, digital transformation, networking, and interconnection" projects, cultivate a batch of specialized, refined, and new enterprises in the industrial chain, and form more new productive enterprises.”

Investment attraction is also a driving force for innovation. According to the "investment attraction map" for the first quarter, in March, the demonstration zone will hold investment talks on the Yangtze River Estuary Industrial Innovation Collaboration and the Tongzhouwan Petrochemical Dual-Circulation Base in Shanghai and southern Jiangsu, paying more and more attention to the scientific and technological attributes such as research and development design and pilot testing in project attraction, ensuring that more than 10 industrial projects with a new investment of over 500 million yuan will be signed in the first quarter.

Tongzhouwan is not only the core area of Nantong's development towards the river and the sea and the new growth pole of high-quality development, but also an important platform for attracting and accommodating advanced elements from the Yangtze River Delta region, especially Shanghai. Currently, the demonstration zone is fully cooperating with governments, high-quality enterprises, universities, and research institutions in Shanghai and southern Jiangsu, exploring offshore innovation mechanisms such as "Yangtze River Delta R\&D, Tongzhouwan transformation," and promoting the accelerated introduction of advanced technologies, high-end talents, and innovative capital. It will build a provincial marine industry characteristic park based on the high-end equipment coastal industrial park, creating a core engine for innovation-driven development.

Industry-City Integration Injects New Vitality

During the Spring Festival, the total transaction volume of real estate activities reached more than 15 million yuan, and the average daily traffic for New Year's goods and food festivals exceeded 3,000 people... During the Year of the Dragon Spring Festival, Tongzhouwan was bustling with activity, with a series of promotional activities such as "Livable Bay City, Spring Festival Real Estate Discount Purchase," "Wonderful Bay City, New Year's Shopping Spree," and "Flavourful Bay City, Spring Festival New Year's Goods and Food Festival" taking place, creating a lively atmosphere.

Closely adhering to the positioning of Nantong's urban sub-center and the "Greater Tongzhou Bay" central city, the Tongzhou Bay Demonstration Zone coordinates and promotes port construction, introduces high-quality supporting facilities, and carries out various consumer-stimulating activities, increasing market vitality and urban popularity, and writing a new chapter in the integration of port, industry, and city.

Revitalizing economic development through rapid port development. Focusing on the positioning of an "industrial port," this year, the demonstration zone will prioritize the completion of wharves 1-3 in the three port pools, dredging the outer side of the Donggang Pool port entrance, and the Hong Haiyang observation platform within the year. It will also accelerate the construction of the second phase of the Xiaomiao Hong upper extension waterway project and provide full-process tracking services for 14 densely-started wharf berths from project reporting, construction to completion acceptance, including those by Lanshui and China Railway 14th Bureau.

Supporting high-quality development with high-quality supporting facilities. With the in-depth promotion of the joint construction of renowned schools and hospitals in the demonstration zone, a full-age education system covering early childhood education to high school education has been fully formed in Tongzhou Bay. The Nantong No. 1 People's Hospital Tongzhou Bay branch is about to open, and living facilities are becoming increasingly complete. The construction of life-service projects such as the InterContinental Hotel is proceeding in an orderly manner, and a number of service enterprises, including San Ye Cao Zhi Shu Technology, Ding Liang Technology, and Ai Shang New Materials, have successively registered and settled here, further promoting the deep integration of port, industry, and city.

In addition, the demonstration zone is also solidly advancing key tasks such as rural revitalization, livelihood security, and social stability, continuously improving social service functions, and continuously enhancing the "temperature" and "quality" of livelihood services.

"In 2024, Sanyu Town will bravely position itself in the more prominent position of the port-industry-city integrated development of the demonstration zone and bravely position itself among the 65 townships in the city to compete, strive for advancement, and excel." Wang Shanwen, Party Secretary of Sanyu Town, Tongzhou Bay Demonstration Zone, stated that they will learn from advanced experiences, identify gaps, and seek breakthroughs with a broader vision, and seize opportunities, promote development, and seek breakthroughs with higher aspirations, striving to build Sanyu, an old town, a major town, and a famous town, into a strong, prosperous, and beautiful town in the new era.