International airport to become prominent transportation hub

Chengdu Tianfu International Airport, a key project in supporting local inland opening-up policies, is set to open in 2021. After its completion, it will make Chengdu the third city in the Chinese mainland, after Beijing and Shanghai, to have two international airports.

Located in the eastern area of Chengdu, it is designed to be the largest civil-use airport project under construction during China's 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20).

The airport was designed to have six runways. After its completion, the annual passenger throughput will reach 90 million and the cargo throughput 2 million metric tons.

As the key part of Chengdu's "entering the east" program, Chengdu has also planned the Tianfu International Airport New Town around the airport.

The new town, with a planned area of 483 square kilometers, should become a new driving force to lead the city's aviation economy, a hub to support the country's inland opening-up and a home for global professionals to fulfill their ambition in innovation, according to local officials.

By the end of April, the first phase of the enterprise headquarters project in the new town was completed. With a total construction area reaching 130,000 square meters, it will realize a series of functions such as hosting exhibitions and offering enterprise services and introduce a group of startup enterprises.

The project integrates more than 30 advanced concepts in its planning, such as the sponge city model, low-cost construction and prefabricated buildings, which represent the direction of city construction in the future, said local officials.

The planning for the project ensured that the original geographical conditions of the land were taken into consideration, integrating the natural landscape into the layout of the project, and realizing a harmonious coexistence between buildings and the natural environment.

In addition, the plan followed smart city concepts and applied new technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence, 5G and the internet of things to better serve the needs of industrial modernization, the civil service and government management.

Officials said the project aimed to be as open interconnected as possible, with pedestrian bridges over roads linking green spaces.

The new town will develop three leading aviation industries, namely manufacturing, modern service and new economy, to promote the integration of aviation and the city.

The local government has launched a plan for an aviation intelligent manufacturing park nearby Tianfu International Airport with a planned area of 500,000 sq m, a key platform starting this year to boost the layout of aviation manufacturing.

In April, six major projects were launched in the new town, covering the industries of e-commerce logistics, air transport, new energy and new materials, education and training. The total investment reached 21.4 billion yuan ($3 billion).

"The Airport New Town is surrounded by mountains and rivers, with beautiful scenery and a bright future for industrial development," said Ren Hongbo, vice-president of Prologis China, an industrial logistics infrastructure provider.

Prologis will set up a wholly foreign-owned enterprise in the new town and invest $100 million in the construction of the Tianfu International Airport Logistics Center project.

"We are optimistic about the industrial prospects and have positive expectations for the development of the project," Ren added.

Ren noted that he will rely on Tianfu International Airport and integrate his company's business into the global supply chain, making full use of the local high-end logistics and warehousing system, to promote the integration of capital flow, logistics and information.

Xiong Wei, general manager of Liandong Group Sichuan, said, the planning and construction concept of the new town is advanced. The supporting facilities for local industry are gradually being built up.

"After the new airport is open, global high-end human, capital and technical resources will gather in this place. We are very optimistic about the future of the project," Xiong said.

Liandong is a company with businesses specializing in the operation of industrial parks. It will invest 6 billion yuan in the new town on the aviation intelligent manufacturing park.

With 5G and industry 4.0 as industrial foundations, the park will focus on the development of leading industries, such as aviation parts manufacturing, aviation maintenance, avionics and robotics, and build up a group of industrial complexes integrating production, research and development for the industry.

According to the management committee of the town, to date, it has signed and registered 50 projects with a total investment of 220 billion yuan since its planning. These include major investment projects from business leaders such as China Telecom and Global Data Solutions.

The town will also feature the Tianfu Olympic Sports Park in an area of 86 sq km, which should become a major venue for Chengdu to hold international sports events and the venue for the 2025 World Games.