Changzhou National Hi-Tech District Attracts Overseas Investors

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By Marco Ferrari

July 31 – As first tier cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou have become more and more crowded, investors have started seeking out new developing industrial areas that can offer greater opportunities and better conditions. Changzhou, located in the southern part of Jiangsu province, and sitting between the two metropolitan cities of Shanghai and Nanjing, is attracting a new wave of foreign investment.

Established in 1992, the Changzhou National Hi-Tech District (CND) is the major development zone in Changzhou. It lies to the north of the city, bordering the Yangtze River in the north and the Shanghai-Nanjing Railway and Beijing-Shanghai railway in the south. Thanks to the ISO14001 certificate, designed to help organizations worldwide manage environmental risk and impact, the CND has attracted many overseas investors. So far, over 10,000 enterprises, mostly from Europe and the United States, have registered in the high-tech district, of which 5,000 are industrial enterprises and about 1,000 are overseas-invested companies.

The CND encourages both Chinese and overseas investors to set up scientific research institutions as well as high-tech enterprises with export orientation, knowledge-intensive and low-energy consumption, and high added value. As a matter of fact the most represented industries are optical, fine chemical, environment protection, bio-pharmaceutical, software, electronic information, textile, photovoltaic, and new materials.

In regard to transportation, the CND is about 160 kilometers away from Shanghai and about 100 kilometers far from Nanjing but it is well-connected by expressways and highways: it takes two hours to drive to Shanghai and an hour to Nanjing. The express railway currently under construction will go through the CND in the south and it will take only 40 minutes to go from Changzhou to Shanghai. Once complete, it will make traveling by train the fastest solution to travel to Beijing and Shanghai. Changzhou Civil Airport , located 15 kilometers away from the CND, also provides another option.

In order to sustain a booming economy, sea transportation is a key issue. Changzhou can rely on its Yangtze River Port, 10 kilometers from the center of the CND and with a capacity of 10,000 DWT.

Finally, Changzhou also can be considered an educational hub and is home to several universities (including Ho Hai University, Changzhou Campus, and Jiangsu University of Science and Technology). An international school is also available.

Five star hotels, new service apartments and villas, among other facilities also make the stay more pleasant for incoming businessmen and expats alike.

For more information about the CND, please contact Jude Zhou with zone’s Euro-American bureau.

For assistance with legal incorporation and tax advice in Changzhou, please contact Olaf Griese, manager, Dezan Shira & Associates Shanghai office.