Yichang, Japan vow to strengthen economic cooperation

 

The Conference on Overseas Chinese Pioneering and Developing in China is the only national-level international exchange event held by Hubei Province every year, aiming to encourage overseas Chinese investments and reach high-tech talents. Since 2021, the event has successfully brought in over 2,600 projects and more than 560 billion yuan (US$78.12 billion) in investments to Hubei Province. 

 

The Japan-Yichang Special Session is organized by Yichang Municipal Government, Hubei Chamber of Commerce in Japan, and the Association of Chinese Doctors in Japan: an organization of Chinese with doctoral degrees working and living in Japan.

 

During the session, the Yichang Municipal Government promoted the city's key industries: green chemicals, hydrogen energy and equipment manufacturing. Experts and scholars from the Association of Chinese Doctors in Japan shared their latest achievements and insights into hydrogen energy and artificial intelligence. Additionally, agreements on establishing a Yichang Economic and Trade Cooperation Contact Station and Yichang Talent Contact Station in Japan were made during the session. 

 

Yichang has established friendly cooperative ties with several Japanese cities, including Kashiwazaki, Yokkaichi, and Ebetsu. In 2021, the total value of imports and exports between Yichang and Japan increased by 53.1 percent year-on-year reaching 2.58 billion yuan.

 

“Yichang has the Three Gorges Dam, the world’s largest hydroelectric power station, and is a globally prestigious phosphate ore producer. The city is highly competitive. There are multiple opportunities for trading with Japanese firms in fields like electrical energy, chemicals, biomedicine, and pesticides,” said Takehiko Saeki, Chief Representative of the Wuhan branch of the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO).

 

Known as the world's Hydroelectricity Capital and China's Heart of Power, Yichang is home to 468 hydropower stations including the Three Gorges Dam and Gezhouba Dam. The total annual power generation coming out of Yichang exceeds 140 billion kWh. With only 0.2 percent of the country's land area, Yichang generates 7 percent of China's total green power. Additionally, Yichang is the largest phosphate ore base along the Yangtze River. With reserves of 4.3 billion tons, it accounts for 15 percent of the country's total, and 56 percent of Hubei's.

 

In 2021, Yichang's total GDP exceeded 500 billion yuan for the first time with the GDP per capita exceeding 120,000 yuan. In the first half of 2022, Yichang City maintained its rapid development attracting 20 industrial projects with tens of billions of yuan invested, such as the BRUNP-CATL Project and the Sunwoda Project. In the future, Yichang plans to focus on the green chemical, biomedical, clean energy, equipment manufacturing, and information technology industries as the main areas for attracting investments, and share opportunities with investors from all over the world with the goal of creating a better future.

The venue of the Japan-Yichang Special Session of the 22nd Conference on Overseas Chinese Pioneering and Developing in China
Wang Li, Vice Governor of Hubei Province and Yichang Municipal Committee Secretary of the Communist Party of China, delivers a keynote speech at the event.
Li Haiwen, the vice president of New Energy Research Association under the Association of Chinese Doctors in Japan, shares his insights and the latest development of Japan’s development strategy of hydrogen energy. 
Unveiling ceremony of the Yichang Talent Contact Station in Japan
Unveiling ceremony of the Yichang Economic and Trade Cooperation Contact Station in Japan