(Yicai Global) Feb. 23 -- Chen Jinhu, Party secretary of Changzhou, yesterday called for early stage investment from Shanghai, especially in small and hard technology firms, saying that the Jiangsu province city fully supports such investment.

Chen said that as an important part of the Yangtze River Delta city cluster, Changzhou has been fully integrated into the Shanghai metropolitan area in recent years. And the economic exchanges and cooperation between the two cities have become closer as an increasing number of Shanghai firms extend their investment territory to Changzhou.

During the recent economic and trade activity between the cities, Changzhou promoted its high-end equipment manufacturing and new energy sectors, and new energy vehicles, new generation information technology, new materials, biomedicine and new medical devices.

Chen said that many of the leading enterprises and advanced technologies in these fields are in Shanghai, and they are highly complementary to Shanghai’s industries.

Changzhou will actively integrate into Shanghai’s industrial chain, undertake industrial transfer, and better promote industries in the two cities to ascend to the upper end of the global industrial and value chains.

He cited the example of the new energy industry. Last year, Changzhou’s new energy output hit CNY500 billion (USD73 billion), with NEV production and sales exceeding 340,000 units. Its vehicle and power battery production and sales accounted for half of the province’s.

He also said that in terms of scientific and technological cooperation, they will further open up the channel of Shanghai’s scientific and technological innovation supply to Changzhou, deepen cooperation with Shanghai, enhance scientific and tech innovation, promote industry-university-research cooperation as well as new product demonstration and application, and introduce global scientific and tech services.

At the recent exchange meeting, deals on a total of 25 major projects with a total investment of CNY41.5 billion (USD6 billion) were signed, involving NEVs, high-end equipment, new materials, integrated circuits and other fields.

Editor: Peter Thomas