Tongzhou Bay has the Singaporean touch

A marina for luxury yachts at Tongzhou Bay in Nantong. [Yang Changguo for China Daliy]

The Tongzhou Bay New Area in Nantong, Jiangsu province, established three years ago, is fast becoming a land of economic opportunities for Singapore businesses.

Approved by the National Development and Reform Commission in March as a State-level demonstration development park, the economic zone has seen a range of deals recently inked with Singaporean firms.

On March 31, a Singaporean logistics company signed an agreement with the area to develop a number of logistics businesses, including for shipments of frozen foods from Singapore to the city’s Xingdong Airport, which is located in Tongzhou district.

Shortly afterward, the Tongzhou Bay New Area sent a delegation of government officials and businesspeople to attend the 2015 Sea Asia exposition in Singapore from April 20 to 24 and highlight Nantong’s marine industry.

An attendee of the expo, Singapore Jurong Port Co has since visited Nantong’s economic zone on several occasions to gather more information on the area’s business environment, major projects and the latest development in the area’s existing port.

The zone’s officials said Singaporean companies in shipping and other marine industry sectors have shown great interest in the area and have asked about investment projects in communication and navigation systems, ship cables, and marine pumps.

Potential investors learn about Tongzhou Bay’s development plan. [Provided to China Daily]

In Singapore, the Tongzhou Bay delegation visited the Singapore Business Federation and a range of leading companies in the marine and logistics industries.

Tan Hong Khoon, chairman and president of Prime Group International, which owns a chain of supermarkets, holiday resorts, retail stores and international schools, said he is also highly interested in the economic zone.

The chairman said he plans to invest about 10 billion yuan ($1.2 billion) into building a resort destination in the new area. The group entered the Yangtze River Delta market 20 years ago. It has launched resorts and golf projects in Shanghai and its neighboring cities including Suzhou, Nanjing, Kunshan and Yangzhou.

The Tongzhou Bay New Area is also planning a technology park for Singaporean companies that would cover approximately 666,666 square meters.

The technology park will provide production facilities and policy support to attract Singapore’s advanced manufacturing industries in shipbuilding, electronic information and precision manufacturing.

Contact the writers through dingcongrong@chinadaily.com.cn