NETDA's new energy industries: A growing cluster of sectors

The development of the new energy industry recently gained momentum in the Nantong Economic & Technological Development Area or NETDA – located in the city of Nantong, in East China's Jiangsu province – with ventures starting up there in such areas as crystalline silicon solar panels and lithium-ion battery energy storage, according to local media reports on Sept 2.   

From January to July this year, its taxable revenue reportedly reached about 4 billion yuan ($619 million), an increase of 200 percent year-on-year.  

One example of the expansion is Shenzhen Senior Technology Material Co Ltd, which invested 10 billion yuan to build an R&D and production plant for lithium battery diaphragms. After completion, its annual output of wet and coated diaphragms will be 3 billion square meters, which is expected to further expand the lithium battery supply chain in the NETDA.  

With a total investment of 5 billion yuan, Shanghai Electronic Gotion New Energy Technology (Nantong) Co Ltd's new battery plant was recently completed and started up. In the future, it will have an annual production capacity of 5 gigawatts of batteries and energy storage equipment and is projected to increase the company's annual revenue by more than 6 billion yuan.  

The NETDA has reportedly set out its development goals, so that leading up to 2025, its new energy ventures in the solar power industry – as well as in the lithium battery and battery diaphragm sectors – will become the core development drivers.

It is expected that they will gradually build up a niche with strong core competitiveness of more than 10 backbone enterprises, with total annual output value expected to top 50 billion yuan.