Xinjiang opens Innovation Park for start-ups

By Li Xiaoxu ( chinadaily.com.cn )

Updated: 2015-08-04

Some 17 enterprises were approved to settle in the innovation park for Xinjiang's returned overseas students, according to a review meeting of the park's enterprises in Urumqi, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, on July 21.

The innovation park covers more than 3,200 square meters in Urumqi Economic and Technological Development Zone. It is expected to help enterprises, especially small and micro-sized businesses in development, innovation and marketing. .

The park provides favorable policies including reduced or free rent, support funds and discounted loans, according to He Zhijia, the director of Innovation Park's management office.

Enterprises entering the innovation park also need to meet standards, such as start-up capital, independent R&D and production capabilities.

The first companies in the park are involved in new energy, electronics, and modern agriculture.

Xinjiang Soil Agricultural Science and Technological Center was one of the enterprises to pass the evaluation, and its chairman Sun Jiusheng returned to China in 2007 after graduating from a university in the United States.

Sun engaged in degradable mulching film and established his company this January. He said, "I applied to settle in the park with my independent research project and hope to develop the company through this platform." Sun added that that the platform can help companies attract investments.

Holding the same expectations, Wang Peiwu, graduated from Chiba University in Japan, brought two projects to the evaluation. Wang set up a biotechnology company in 2012. He is looking forward to expanding his market with two research programs in rice irrigation and sewage treatment.

Edited by Andrew Ancheta