Zhanjiang's European visit delivers fruitful results

The recent European tour by a Zhanjiang delegation led by Party chief Zheng Renhao has proved to be productive, with several cooperation agreements being signed and a series of enterprises being persuaded to attend the 2018 China Marine Economy Expo.

The delegates first visited the Great Stone Industrial Park in Belarus on July 19, where they were warmly received by the park's senior executives and briefed on the area's development layout, industrial positioning and preferential policies.

The two sides then held in-depth discussions regarding Zhanjiang enterprises' investment in the industrial park and importing of high-quality agricultural products from Belarus. A trip was paid to the local vegetable market for preliminary research.

Upon arrival in Moscow, capital of Russia, on July 20, the delegation paid a visit to the Chinese Embassy in Russia and sought advice on how to enhance cooperation with Russia amid the unprecedented opportunities and investment boom brought about by the Belt & Road Initiative.

2018 and 2019 are years of China-Russia local cooperation and exchange. Li Hui, ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary at the embassy, spoke highly of the well-timed visit and believed that Zhanjiang's aquatic products and small household appliances have a market in Russia.

On July 21, the delegates drove to Serpukhov, an international sister city of Zhanjiang. Julia Kupetskaya, vice mayor of Serpukhov, and Anatoly Yakushev, president of the Serpukhov Chamber of Commerce, received them and expressed willingness to attend the China Marine Economy Expo in Zhanjiang in November.

Zheng attended the signing ceremony of an agreement on technical cooperation between Guanhao Hi-Tech and OOO Technology Pro on July 23.  Both companies are large-scale papermaking enterprises with a strong presence in the thermo-sensitive paper market.

In Tampere, an industrial city in Finland, the delegates toured the equipment test site and labs of Kalmar Group. Zhanjiang Port Group signed a strategic cooperation agreement with the company regarding container handling and logistics techniques.

Discussions were also held between the delegates and seniors from Poyry and Andritz. Zhanjiang looks forward to upgrading the local papermaking industry, boosting production capacity and setting out on a green development path through enhanced cooperation with the two world leading companies.