Shenzhong Link to unleash potential for business growth

A view of the Shenzhong Link (Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link), which is scheduled to open later this month.Photos by Liu Xudong

A container ship passes under the link May 30.

ENTERPRISES close to the Shenzhong Link (Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link), set to open this month, are eagerly anticipating the project’s opening because they view the project as a catalyst for prosperity and the growth of innovative ventures.

Shenzhen Daily and a group of other media organizations from home and abroad were invited on a two-day tour of the mega cross-sea passage in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) last week.

The 24-kilometer project is the world’s most challenging cross-sea cluster project to date. It starts at the Shenzhen airport interchange and connects with Ma’anshan Island in Zhongshan across the Pearl River. Upon opening, the time it takes to travel between Zhongshan and Shenzhen will be cut from two hours to less than 30 minutes.

Guangdong’s three pilot free trade zones — Qianhai in Shenzhen, Nansha in Guangzhou, and Hengqin in Zhuhai — will be connected when the project is completed.

Zhongshan industry upgrading

The Starlight Alliance Global Brand Lighting Center in Guzhen Township, Zhongshan, known as the “Capital of China’s Lighting Industry,” is an international professional lighting market that integrates procurement, experience, and lighting culture. In June 2016, Starlight Alliance was recognized as the first national 3A-level tourist scenic spot in Guzhen. With the opening of the Shenzhong Link, it is expected that the town will attract more visitors from Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

Qu Decheng, executive vice chairman of the Zhongshan Lighting Appliances Industry Association, believes that the opening of the Shenzhong Link will support the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries in Zhongshan, especially the lighting industry.

“Shenzhen is a hub for innovation, finance, and talent. The link will facilitate the flow of people, goods, and capital between the two cities. Combined with Zhongshan’s advantage in land resources and relatively low operating and living costs, the complementary advantages between the two locations are very evident,” he said.

“I can see the link from my office,” said Wang Zhongmin, vice president of Akeso, a Zhongshan-based biopharmaceutical company dedicated to research and development, manufacturing, and commercialization of new innovative antibody drugs.

“Our company will greatly benefit from the link as it will only take 15 to 20 minutes to travel from here to the Shenzhen airport. This will make things much more convenient for us in talent recruitment, communication with our suppliers, as well as visits from overseas clients,” Wang said.

SZ business expansion

Jin Liang, chairman of Shenzhen Smart Drone UAV Co. Ltd., is confident that the project will effectively reduce the production costs of technology companies in Shenzhen and enhance application scenarios for enterprises. For example, Shenzhen companies can set up production bases in Zhongshan, where land and labor costs are lower than in Shenzhen.

“If we can also get preferential policies from the Zhongshan government, we will consider setting up a new production base in Zhongshan. In this way, we can expand our production capacity to meet greater market demand and better serve our company’s low-altitude economic strategy,” he said.

Kong Bo, vice president of Orbbec Inc., a 3D vision technology firm, also set his sights on the west bank of the Pearl River. He said that when choosing the location, he had already considered the convenience brought by the Shenzhong Link for going to the west bank of the Pearl River.

“At present, we are building the first manufacturing base in Shunde in Foshan to meet the production capacity needs for the next five to 10 years. With the opening of the link, it will be completely possible to work in Shenzhen and live in Zhongshan in the future,” he said. (Shenzhen Daily)