(Yicai) Dec. 20 -- Shanghai has launched a series of initiatives to accelerate the construction of scientific research infrastructure to build a global science and technology innovation center.

Projects that research key technologies and equipment in the photonics, life sciences, artificial intelligence, energy, and marine fields can receive as much as CNY300 million (USD42 million) to cover up to 80 percent of the cost of their facilities, according to a document the city government released yesterday. 

A user subsidy system for project facilities will also be set up to support small and mid-sized firms in science and technology innovation, the document showed. The cost of using the facilities will be as much as halved through government-issued vouchers up to CNY1 million (USD140,280) a year.

Shanghai has built 11 major scientific research facilities, has another four under construction, and five at the planning stage, with a total investment of CNY35 billion (USD4.9 billion), said Qiu Wenjin, deputy director of the Shanghai Municipal Development and Reform Commission.

These facilities have helped the city achieve major innovations in integrated circuits, biomedicine, and AI, Qiu said. 

The Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility in Zhangjiang Science City, for example, has served more than 700 research institutions and 63,000 researchers, making it the research facility with the most users and most significant results in China, according to the Shanghai Promotion Office for Science and Technology Center Construction.

Shanghai will also evaluate the use of scientific research facilities and offer their operators rewards of CNY15 million, CNY10 million, and CNY5 million (USD2.1 million, USD1.4 million, and USD705,270) for reaching certain targets, according to the document.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Martin Kadiev