Projects not only drive industrial growth but reshape region's role in coastal economic belt

A view of BASF's new Verbund site in Zhanjiang, Guangdong province. CHINA DAILY

The inauguration on March 26 of German multinational chemical major BASF's new Verbund site in Zhanjiang, South China's Guangdong province, is bringing new opportunities for the city's industrial upgrade. It will become a model for intelligent and sustainable manufacturing, Zhanjiang officials said.

A memorandum of understanding for the project was signed in July 2018 and its construction was officially launched in November 2019, with a total investment of nearly 8.7 billion euros ($10.1 billion). It is to date the third-largest production base of BASF worldwide.

The new Verbund site includes steam-cracking tech with an annual ethylene production capacity of 1 million metric tons. It also has some downstream production facilities serving consumer markets, in a bid to meet customer demand across industries in South China and throughout Asia.

The new Verbund site is a major manufacturing project following the other two in the city: the Baosteel Zhanjiang Iron and Steel, and the Zhongke (Guangdong) Refinery and Petrochemical project.

These projects not only drive industrial agglomeration in the region but are to reshape the city's role in China's coastal economic belt, officials said, adding that turning more raw materials into locally processed and value-added products is becoming a reality.

During the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), Zhanjiang set up a "four green and one blue" industrial system composed of green steel, green petrochemicals, green energy and green food, as well as a blue marine economy. The city has been accelerating the building of a modern industrial system.

Yu Gang, Party secretary of Zhanjiang, said: "The 14th Five-Year Plan is a period for Zhanjiang to accelerate industrial upgrading and build momentum for economic development. Zhanjiang has established a system led by the 'four green and one blue' industries."

Among them, green petrochemicals as well as modern agriculture and green food industry clusters each exceeded 100 billion yuan ($14.5 billion) in annual output value, becoming core engines of economic growth, Yu said.

According to Yu, Zhanjiang now ranks first in Guangdong province in the number of gravity-type net cages for marine ranching and large-scale aquaculture platforms, and third in the province in the comprehensive evaluation of urban competitiveness in marine economy.

In 2022, the Zhongke (Guangdong) Refinery and Petrochemical project, with an investment of about 40 billion yuan, became the city's first enterprise with an annual output value exceeding 100 billion yuan. Subsequently, the city's modern agriculture and food industry cluster also surpassed 100 billion yuan in annual output value.

At present, the Baosteel Zhanjiang Iron and Steel project, with a total investment of about 86 billion yuan, has an annual output value of more than 60 billion yuan. Moreover, several industrial clusters with annual output value posting around 10 billion yuan each, such as green energy, are taking shape.

In 2025, Zhanjiang achieved a regional GDP of 395.29 billion yuan, growing by 4.5 percent year-on-year and ranking fourth in Guangdong in terms of growth rate.

The added value of industrial enterprises above designated size, or those with an annual revenue of 20 million yuan or above, increased by 10.7 percent year-on-year, ranking first in the province. The added value of the chemical raw materials and chemical products manufacturing industry rose by 24.9 percent. Currently, the industrial output value contributes 47 percent to regional GDP growth.

In 2025, Zhanjiang's 476 key projects fulfilled an investment of 80.17 billion yuan, of which 56.03 billion yuan went to those categorized as Guangdong provincial key projects, exceeding the annual investment target.

Industrial investment reached 56.46 billion yuan, accounting for 57.1 percent of total investment. In particular, investment in industrial technological transformation increased by 10.3 percent, maintaining positive growth for 28 consecutive months.

Viewing the high-quality business environment as a core driver of opening-up and development, Zhanjiang has taken improving the business environment as the key and has been deepening reforms and enhancing service efficiency.

When delivering this year's government work report at the end of February, Zhanjiang Mayor Li Yongyi said that the city will continue to construct development zones and various industrial parks to high standards. It will support the main platforms involved in industrial transfer to attract more than 40 new projects and start construction on more than 25 new projects.

The city will also support the Donghai Island Petrochemical Industrial Park to build itself into a grade-D facility and advance the standardized construction of provincial-level industrial parks, aiming to sign contracts for more than 60 projects, Li said.

Zhanjiang will also strengthen the operation mechanism driven by a group of high-profile players involved in the local industry chain, leverage leading enterprises to drive the agglomeration of upstream and downstream enterprises, and expand the "four green and one blue" industrial clusters. It will promote the development of industrial enterprises, targeting a 6 percent year-on-year increase in the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size, Li added.