Innovative zone is home to 306 State-level research bodies

The Shenyang Hunnan Science and Technology City is becoming home to a number of industrial project incubators and scientist workshops as the high-tech hub in Northeast China's Liaoning province kicked off its construction in April.

"I have always had strong confidence in this area because it enjoys favorable timing, and good geographical and human conditions," said Yan Zhanfeng, Party secretary of Hunnan district.

The sci-tech city, of which the priority is to let technology and innovation drive its development, is aligned with national policies of enhancing innovation to promote economic and social development and improve the livelihood of people, while adhering to an innovation-driven development strategy, and to achieving greater self-reliance and strength in science and technology, Yan said. The provincial government has also listed the sci-tech city as a strategic project during its 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25) period.

Shenyang is striving to build the area into a regional hub for scientific and technological innovation, an engine for new and old kinetic energy conversion and a demonstration area for the economy, mainly through unprecedented economic and policy support.

The sci-tech city boasts transportation and logistics advantages by having a comprehensive transport system covering high-speed trains, light rail, expressways and airlines.

A check-in hall built for the area will also be put into use in the future. The area enjoys multiple preferential policies as it is located at the intersection of national high-tech and free trade zones, and an entrepreneurship and innovation demonstration base.

The first phase of its construction plan covers an area of 30 square kilometers, and the second phase will be carried out on another 30-sq-km piece of land, ensuring projects have enough space there for their construction, Yan said.

Currently, the sci-tech city is home to 306 State-level research bodies such as the automation and metal research institutes of the Chinese Academy of Sciences as well as 2,346 small and medium-sized sci-tech businesses and 1,104 high-tech enterprises.

To foster a first-class business climate in the area, local authorities streamlined administration and cut red tape for developers in terms of securing approval for land use and acceptance inspection.

For example, the approval time for engineering and construction projects has been reduced from 50 days to 20 days. More than 1,330 approval items can also be dealt with online. The sci-tech city also has a good natural environment. It has nearly 100 parks of all kinds, and the green coverage rate reaches more than 35 percent.

The average concentration of PM2.5 particulate matter is close to the standard of the European Union.

"We will continue to accelerate the construction of the sci-tech city, and focus on five leading industries — new materials, intelligent manufacturing, information technology, healthcare and digital cultural innovation," Yan said.

Hunnan will help the Liaoning Academy of Materials and Liaohe Laboratory to upgrade into national-level labs as soon as possible.

Other measures to be taken include the improvement of services on finance and intellectual property and the integration of innovation, industrial, capital, talent and policy chains, Yan added.

Liu Jianjun, chairman of Experience Technology, said: "The sci-tech city provides us with a large number of talents. We have introduced some academicians and experts to settle in the area. We hope to give full play to our strengths and make greater contributions to the sci-tech city."

Zhao Jiuhong, chairman of Shenyang International Software Park of Only Info-tech, said: "The launch of Hunnan Science and Technology City has promulgated 12 high-level policies for investment promotion and industrial support. Hunnan will inevitably play a more important role in the country's technological innovation and the development of emerging industries."

Jiang Dicontributed to this story.

haonan@chinadaily.com.cn