The groundbreaking ceremony for Huadong Heavy Machinery (Nantong) Smart Manufacturing Base is held in Qidong. [Photo/WeChat account: qidongfabu]

The groundbreaking ceremony for Huadong Heavy Machinery (Nantong) Smart Manufacturing Base was held in the Lyusi Port Economic Development Zone on Nov 18.

The project represents a total investment of 2 billion yuan ($282.88 million). Once completed, it is expected to produce 92 rail-mounted gantry cranes and 28 quay cranes each year, with projected annual sales of 3 billion yuan.

The investor, Wuxi Huadong Heavy Machinery (HDHM), is the first and only privately owned company listed on China's A-share market that specializes in container handling equipment. Its port machinery products serve major ports in China and have been exported to dozens of countries and hundreds of ports worldwide, establishing the company as a leading global supplier of port handling equipment.

On Oct 18 last year, HDHM established a wholly owned subsidiary in Qidong focused on designing, manufacturing, installing, and maintaining specialized equipment, as well as selling smart port handling machinery.