"Over the past decade, the Nansha region has seen its GDP grow at an average annual rate of nearly 10%. More specifically, the output value of the automobile manufacturing industry has exceeded 200 billion yuan, and over 1,000 artificial intelligence and life health enterprises have settled here. This has led to the preliminary formation of a relatively complete industrial chain of compound semiconductors and an industry pattern for commercial aerospace. In 2023, the total investment in newly signed and started projects exceeded 550 billion yuan, with over 270 Fortune Global 500 projects introduced. Ranking 7th in the comprehensive assessment of national-level economic development zones in China, Nansha demonstrates strong momentum in high-quality development," said Wu Yang, Head of Nansha District.
On the afternoon of April 9th, the Nansha Special Session of the 10th Guangzhou Annual Investment Conference commenced at the International Financial Forum (IFF) Permanent Site.
During this event, Nansha District signed 60 projects with a total investment exceeding 200 billion yuan. Multiple batches of contracts were signed, including key industrial projects, the projects of "Going Global" Companies Comprehensive Service Center for Chinese Enterprises, projects for pilot areas, and projects in the agricultural opening-up and cooperation pilot zone.
One of the landmark projects is by Dawning Information Industry Company Limited (referred to as "Sugon"), which will integrate chips, advanced computing, terminals, and intelligent equipment sectors to invest in and build its South China headquarters in Nansha.
"We hope to fully leverage Nansha's advantages in policy support, geographic location, talent pool, and ecological assets to create a hundred-billion-level advanced computing industry cluster that excels in development, utility, and environmental sustainability," said Jiang Dandong, Vice President of Sugon, in an interview.
At the event, Nansha unveiled the list of the first batch of application scenarios. It includes 15 application scenarios with open access, covering five major areas: unmanned systems in all spatial dimensions of land, sea, and air, marine technology, green and low-carbon solutions, biomedicine, and smart transportation.
In December 2023, the National Development and Reform Commission, Ministry of Commerce, and State Administration for Market Regulation in China jointly issued an opinion on easing market access and strengthening regulatory system reform to support Nansha to take the lead in relaxing market access in 11 key areas, such as unmanned systems in all spatial dimensions of land, sea, and air. The opinion aims to establish an international advanced technology application center (Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area) in order to innovate application scenarios and facilitate the market-oriented application of cutting-edge and disruptive technologies. To implement the opinion, Nansha District extensively solicited application scenarios from enterprises, scientific research institutions, and other sectors of society, and compiled the list of the first batch of application scenarios to propel the pioneering application and promotion of more new technologies, products, and equipment in the region.
For example, the list advocates for easing the commercial operation and promotion of level 4 intelligent vehicles. This will rapidly introduce level 4 intelligent vehicles to the market and stimulate the optimization and iteration of intelligent driving technology, thereby bolstering the refinement and expansion of Nansha's intelligent & connected vehicle (ICV) industry. In the field of biomedicine, the list encourages the construction of a clinical-standard production and testing platform for cell and gene therapy products. This will accelerate the development of cell and gene therapy drugs and ensure the approval and listing of innovative drugs through compliant software and hardware settings, thus contributing to the high-quality development of Nansha and the entire Greater Bay Area in the field of cell and gene therapy.