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576 Municipal and District-level Key Projects Launched in 2021
Date: 2022-01-31
Source: Beijing Daily
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Sinovac Research & Development Co., Ltd. and Sinopharm Beijing Institute of Biological Products Co., Ltd. successively expanded their production capacity of COVID-19 vaccines and produced a total of 5 billion doses. Planning of the second phase of Universal Beijing Resort began right after the opening of the first phase; 301 old residential compounds were improved in an all-round manner, and residents of 177 old residential compounds felt the changes at their doorsteps.

Intensified investments and intensively-launched projects marked a good beginning of the investments in Beijing during the 14th Five-Year Plan period. Beijing Municipal Commission of Development and Reform recently disclosed that in 2021, the city's investment in fixed assets increased by 4.9% year-on-year, which was 1.9 percentage points higher than expected at the beginning of the year; with a total investment of 778.2 billion yuan, construction of 576 municipal and district-level key projects aiming to promote the parallel progress of the "five key initiatives" is well under way.

The implementation of the "five key initiatives" has driven positive investment growth

Last October, Beijing Hyundai's No. 1 Factory, where Sonata, Tucson and Elantra were once produced, was transformed into the global flagship factory of Li Auto Inc. The total investment of this project alone exceeds 6 billion yuan. What lies behind the investment is the annual production capacity of 100,000 battery electric vehicles.

As a part of the "troika" for growth, investment requires prudent consideration. "The municipal government focuses on the effectiveness of investment when formulating plans of key projects, with priorities given to the 'five key initiatives'." According to a relevant person in charge from Beijing Municipal Commission of Development and Reform, Beijing is making great effort to achieve progress in the "five key initiatives", including building Beijing into an international center for innovation, developing the "two zones", building a global model city of the digital economy, stimulating and creating new demand through supply-side structural reform, and making greater headway with Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei coordinated development.

The implementation of the "five key initiatives" hinges on each individual project. Huairou Science City has entered a stage wherein construction and operation are equally important, which represents a solid step toward building the city into an international center for innovation. With the completion of the Zhongguancun Mobile Intelligent Service Innovation Park and BioFront new drug incubation center, and the construction of the second phase of China International Exhibition Center, flagship projects of the "two zones" are gaining momentum. Greater headway has been made in turning Beijing into a global model city of the digital economy--13,000 new 5G base stations have been set up, 1,028 kilometers of roads have been opened for testing of internet of vehicles, and the world's first high-level autonomous driving demonstration zone has been established.

Last year, Beijing witnessed investment growth in a wide range of fields: 10.3% annual increase in construction and installation and equipment procurement, 68.3% in manufacturing, 20% in software and IT services, and 68.2% in the financial sector. These investments have injected new impetus into high-quality development of Beijing.

Construction of key municipal projects started at the highest rate in a decade

At the beginning of each year, Beijing unveils an ambitious plan. The construction plan covering 300 key municipal projects that attracts much attention from citizens and enterprises is an important driving force for Beijing's economic growth.

According to a relevant person in charge from Beijing Municipal Commission of Development and Reform, Beijing has developed an innovative working method of focusing on newly started projects, continued projects, new projects and reserve projects. As a result, the investment in last year's 300 key municipal projects reached 287.2 billion yuan, three percentage points higher than planned. Construction has started on 85% of these projects, the highest level in ten years.

The plan only represents part of the key projects. Every quarter, the city kicks off 160 major projects at the municipal and district levels. In total, 576 projects started construction throughout the year, with a total investment of 778.2 billion yuan.

Construction of more than 4,000 projects continued with relatively high intensity despite such negative factors as the COVID-19 pandemic and excessive rainfall in the flood season. A number of major projects have seen significant progress:

a) The main media center of the second phase of China National Convention Center was delivered.

b) Nine lines (sections) of rail transit were completed and opened to traffic, setting a record in terms of the number of subway lines (sections) opened in a year. The mileage of rail transit (including suburban railways) reached 1,148 kilometers.

c) Comprehensive treatment and ecological restoration of the main stream of Yongding River have been fully implemented, enabling smooth flow of the whole river. All five major rivers passing through Beijing flow unimpededly into the sea.

Implementing a number of urban renewal projects in contiguous areas

Longfu Temple, Wangfujing, West Zone of Zhongguancun, Sanlitun North District, South Central Axis-Dahongmen…. The upgrade of such places familiar to people living in Beijing will continue.

"Beijing will formulate a planned land use policy mechanism featuring overall planning of areas, dynamic balance, mixed functions and compatible uses. We will launch in contiguous areas a number of distinctive, pacesetting demonstration projects on urban renewal, and we will make full use of the idle land resources to build more amenities. Our goal is to make urban renewal an industry that attracts 100 billion yuan of investment, and to gradually shift the focus of the investment from starting new projects to improving the existing ones." said a relevant person in charge from Beijing Municipal Commission of Development and Reform.

Plans have also been made regarding infrastructure and people's livelihood that citizens pay close attention to. This year, Beijing will moderately invest in advance to support the coordinated development of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei and the building of a resilient and safe city. Large-scale investment will continue in rail transit, suburban railways, urban roads, and comprehensive hubs. Best efforts will be made to promote projects concerning people's livelihood, including education, health and old-age care. The supply of affordable rental housing will be expanded. A number of community "vitality centers" with multiple functions to serve people's lives will be built. More cultural, sports and leisure facilities will be located near residential communities to provide citizens with unique experience.

(Reporter: Cao Zheng)