Entering the new era, Nantong has seen multiple achievements. For example, its economic aggregate exceeded 1 trillion yuan ($140.37 billion) in 2020. The city also revealed its vision for the 14th Five-Year Plan period and even for 2035.

Connecting South and North China

Thanks to its proximity to Shanghai, and its connectivity with southern and northern Jiangsu, Nantong has great potential as an important city for the integrated development of the Yangtze River Delta.

How can Nantong be built into a "Shanghai" in North China and a "new major city in South Jiangsu"? Nantong has proposed a plan of One Hub and Five Goals, which envisions an integrated modern transportation hub, a national innovative city, a model of YRD integration, a city with river and sea features, a low-carbon garden city, and a happy city suitable for daily life and work.

"Shanghai" in North China and a "new major city in South Jiangsu"

After the Yangtze River-crossing channels were completed, Nantong was no longer "inaccessible" to other cities to South China. The city has tried to seize the opportunities created by the metropolis of Shanghai and take advantage of the spillover effect of industrial transfers in southern Jiangsu to build itself into a "Shanghai" in North China and a "new major city in South Jiangsu".

Bolstering maritime industries

The aim of building Nantong into a "Shanghai" in North China and a "new major city in South Jiangsu" is closely related to the Yangtze River and the Huanghai Sea, and the city's One Hub and Five Goals strategy also puts the emphasis on maritime industries.

The Outline of the Regional Integrated Development Plan of the Yangtze River Delta encompasses construction of a new seaport for shipping containers along the Yangtze River in Tongzhou Bay, Nantong.

Guided by the Great Tongzhou Bay plan, Nantong has been promoting coastal development and coordinating river and sea-based development. Under the new development plan, the Tongzhou Bay will be equipped with approach channels with capacities of 100,000 and 200,000 metric tons and a comprehensive transport system incorporating roads, railways, and waterways.

The city will accelerate the development of modern maritime industries. By the end of 2025, a modern industrial system in coastal areas will have basically taken shape. Its preliminary high-end green coastal industrial base worth over 1 trillion yuan and the Great Tongzhou Bay comprehensive energy base will have been formed.

Editor-in-chief: Yu Lei

Editor: Wang Yun

Photo by Gu Yao

Translated by Wang Haifei from the Shanghai Waiyuan Translation Agency