(Yicai Global) Jan. 20 -- The Shanghai New Energy Vehicle & Key Parts Industrial Base, an industrial park in the car factory hub of Jiading district, caters to the eastern city's ambitious 2025 goals of NEV production.

The base, established almost two decades ago, has attracted firms that aim to make electric vehicles intelligent, as well as manufacturers of automotive electronics and robotics, Yicai Global learned during a visit to the 2.6-square-kilometer venue recently.

The park fits the city's trajectory. In October 2022, Shanghai’s municipal government said that the annual production volume of NEVs should exceed 1.2 million units by 2025. The annual output should exceed CNY350 billion (USD51.6 billion), contributing more than 35 percent to the car sector's total.

From the beginning, the Jiading facility has been focusing on the entire NEV supply chain, including batteries, electrical machinery, and electric controllers, said Zhao Haojie, the secretary of the park developer. The park has gathered leading firms such as Gotion High-Tech and these companies have attracted others to join.

The industrial base has lured 35 major projects and attracted nearly 270 firms with a total investment of more than CNY17 billion (USD2.5 billion), according to official data.

Deals are quick. Mark Anthony Rawlinson, chairman of Shanghai-based Leoni Electrical Systems, said it only took two weeks to close a deal regarding a new project with Chinese carmaker SAIC Group after he arrived in Jiading in 2004. The process was faster than expected. "This is one of the reasons why we chose to settle in Jiading," the British man said, adding that the China team has grown to 10,000 people from merely four at the beginning.

China is the world’s best market, Rawlinson said, adding that the government has revealed supportive low-carbon policies. By 2030, the number of NEVs sold should account for around 50 percent of the total, which is "disruptively innovative," per the chairman.

The NEV hub has achieved a clustering effect, according to Yu Zhongjie, sales director at Chiyu Information Consulting. Visiting clients can sense the unique atmosphere at the park as the facility teems with automakers and technology firms and the closeness of different parts of the supply chain makes it easy to communicate in a timely manner, Yu added.

The close-knit network is not accidental as Zhao at the facility operator said that the park has been detecting and filling gaps in the local industrial layout to build a complete ecosystem.

One of the current goals is to find automotive software companies, Zhao said, adding that providers of testing services and data analysis are gradually entering the car industry. These firms can offer strong technological capabilities and talent pools to the park to improve its competitiveness. "These will be the major entities that the park tries to find and attract in the future," the secretary added.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi