NINGBO has big plans to become a key player in the country's marine economy. The city will focus on developing port services, manufacturing, new marine industries and island resources. Feng Jianmin reports.

From China's southern Pearl River Delta, to the eastern Yangtze River Delta, and to northern Bohai Bay, plans to develop the marine economy have been rolled out along the country's coastline.

Ahead of the opening of China's first Marine Economy Investment Fair, Ningbo vowed to become a stronghold in the country's marine economy in the next 10 years, Zhejiang Province officials said in Beijing last month during a promotional event for the fair. The fair will be held in Ningbo this week.

The province is China's first demonstrative zone in developing its marine economy, and has released a plan that involves 490 major projects and a total investment of 1.2 trillion yuan (US$188 billion). The plan aims to improve the structure of China's marine economy.

Ningbo, taking advantage of its location, industrial base, abundant resources and political support, has taken responsibility for playing a key role in the province's ocean strategy.

In February, Ningbo was selected by the State Council as a core district within China's marine economic plan.

"The decision of the State Council has created historic opportunities for Ningbo," said Mayor Liu Qi.

The development of the city's marine economy will be driven by modern logistics services which combines shipping, trading and financial services, according to the government plan.

The city will also focus on industrial manufacturing and trading, incorporating land and sea businesses, and balancing resource exploitation and environmental protection.

"The sea is Ningbo's biggest resource and it has great potential as a part of the city's future," said Wang Huizhong, Party secretary of Ningbo. "We should maximize the benefits of the ocean and push the city's economy into a new era."

Ningbo is a part of the Yangtze River Delta and is a crucial platform between the area and the Asia-Pacific region. Against the background of Zhejiang's strategy to exploit ocean resources, Ningbo takes a significant role in pushing forward the restructuring of its economy.

Ningbo has a land area of 10,000 square kilometers and 10,000 square kilometers of marine area.

In 2010, the economic output of the city's marine economy was 80.6 billion yuan, or 16 percent of the city's gross domestic product. The city envisions this reaching 450 billion yuan by 2020.

In 2010, container throughput at Ningbo Port was 13 million twenty-foot equivalent units, ranking sixth in the world. By 2015, container throughput is expected to exceed 15 million TEUs.

Technology will play a key role in this shift. In the next five years, the new technology emerging from marine industries will contribute to 80 percent of the city's new technology. The growth of output in these new industries will be about 40 percent.

Ningbo has already become an important part of the international shipping hub of Shanghai, and the city is determined to cooperate more closely with neighboring Zhoushan Island, which was approved by the State Council in June to become China's first insular new area specialized in marine economy. The island is also the fourth national-level new area after Shanghai's Pudong New Area, Tianjin Binhai New Area and Chongqing Liangjiang New Area.

"Faced with new opportunities, Ningbo will focus on development of port services, manufacturing, new marine industries and island resources," the mayor said.

"Our mission is to integrate land development and the sea, and to layout the industries scientifically."

The framework of the plan evolved from a core area in Ningbo-Zhoushan, extending to two strips of coastal area north and south to Ningbo, including 10 industrial zones and 10 islands.

The mission for Ningbo City and Zhousan Island, including sea and land areas nearby, is to build a logistics system and trading platform for commodities.

Surrounding the core area, 10 industrial zones will be constructed along the coast near Hangzhou Bay and south to Ningbo City. The 10 islands have been chosen as a basis for developing logistics, industry, tourism and clean energy.

Great business potential is brewing in the dynamic ocean plan.

"We insist on market openness and mutual benefits, and we strongly encourage cooperation," said Liu. "The city will develop the marine economy under the guideline of market integrity and free trade."

He said Ningbo will enhance strategic cooperation with various government bodies and cities in the Yangtze River Delta. The city will also work to attract the world's top 500 corporations, state-owned enterprises and large private companies.

The first part of the plan calls for construction of fourth-generation ports, which can not only handle huge cargo volumes, but can also incorporate trading of ships, exchange of crews and off-shore financial services. The ports can also contribute to easier customs clearance and trading benefits.

Modern logistics, manufacturing and construction of roads and other infrastructure will also be indispensable parts of the marine economy.

"We insist on being courageous and innovative," Mayor Liu said. "We shall relax entry conditions, and absorb more foreign investment and capital from both state-owned and private sectors to explore the ocean."

The government's plan revealed that the city will focus on industrial sectors including liquid chemicals, iron ore, coal, plastics, nickel and shipping. Manufacturing of petrochemicals, automobiles and ships will be a priority along the coastal industrial zones.

In the petrochemical sector, the city will ultimately form a world-class petrochemical base capable of refining 100 million tons of oil and 3.5 million tons of ethylene a year.

Ningbo also aims to create capacity to produce 21 million tons of steel annually. By 2015, 800,000 cars and engines will be produced each year.

The city will also focus on developing magnetic materials and advanced chemical materials. The annual output of these new materials is expected to reach 200 billion yuan in 2015.

In terms of other new industries, the government will support emerging sectors such as marine equipment manufacturing, and accelerate the construction of "marine farmland" to improve the quality of the modern fishing industry.

"We target the high end of the value chain, and shall make every effort to become an important industrial base in the country," said Chen Feilong, director of the Ningbo Development and Reform Commission.

"Under the premise of optimizing environment protection, we shall focus on sectors with good market prospects, minimum environment impact and high efficiency."