Exhibition area for Zhanjiang's signature products at Zhanjiang North Railway Station. WU DONGJUN/FOR CHINA DAILY

Ren Gang, deputy director at the Zhanjiang Bay Laboratory, leads a life of "two cities". His family is in Guangzhou but he spends most of his time working in Zhanjiang. Ren said he had been looking forward to the opening of the Guangzhou-Zhanjiang High-Speed Railway for a long time.

"The opening of the Guangzhou-Zhanjiang high-speed railway greatly shortens the travel time between Guangzhou and Zhanjiang, making weekend family reunions more convenient, reducing the stress of long-distance travel, improving work-life balance, and enhancing overall happiness," he said.

The Zhanjiang Bay Laboratory focuses on marine equipment, marine energy and marine biology. Using the laboratory's research as an example, Ren thinks that the high-speed railway will aid frequent cooperation and exchanges between the laboratory and research institutions and universities from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area's major cities, such as Guangzhou and Shenzhen; accelerate the flow of talent, technology, data and samples; and enhance research collaboration and output efficiency.

Ren said that the railway helps attract high-end talent to engage in research and industrial work in Zhanjiang, alleviating the challenges of talent mobility due to transport limitations. Furthermore, the transport of research materials such as equipment and reagents becomes more efficient and the laboratory may better integrate into Guangdong's innovation network.

Huang Gangming, an executive at Baosteel Zhanjiang Iron and Steel, also believes that the roughly 90-minutes journey brings enterprises closer to research institutions in the Pearl River Delta, creating more convenient conditions for technological cooperation and attracting talent.

According to local news reports, since the announcement of the opening of the Guangzhou-Zhanjiang high-speed railway, there has been an increase in investment enquiries from the GBA. Recently, there have been plans for delegations to take the high-speed train for negotiations, covering projects in several fields such as high-end equipment manufacturing, new energy and new materials.

At a news conference held by the Zhanjiang government on Wednesday, Huang Ming, deputy director of the Zhanjiang investment promotion bureau, said that they will seize the "high-speed rail opportunities" and fully undertake the industrial transfer from the GBA.They will focus on the "four greens and one blue" (green steel, green petrochemicals, green energy, green food and the blue marine economy), as well as fields including artificial intelligence and the low-altitude economy to attract investment, emphasizing "quality, brand and taste". They will accelerate the development of an intelligent, green and integrated modern industrial system, creating dynamic and vibrant "industrial Zhanjiang", according to Huang.

"The opening of the Guangzhou-Zhanjiang high-speed railway is what I am most looking forward to this year," said Liang Xinying, the founder of a Zhanjiang-based agricultural technology company.

Liang added: "We specialize in '48-hour live or chilled golden pompano (fish) delivery to your door' and 'ready-to-eat golden pompano products nationwide delivery'. The high-speed railway will allow western Guangdong's fresh products, especially our golden pompano products, to enter core markets of the Greater Bay Area more quickly."