The signing ceremony for Phase II of the Grace high-end equipment manufacturing base is held in Qidong. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

The signing ceremony for Phase II of the Grace high-end equipment manufacturing base was held in Qidong on Jan 27, marking a new round of investment in the city's growing advanced manufacturing sector.

Invested by Grace Investment of Hong Kong, Yanda Group is a world-leading modular manufacturer specializing in clean energy modules.

On Feb 29, 2024, Grace's Phase I project was launched in the Lyusi Port Economic Development Zone with a total investment of $350 million. Covering about 33.67 hectares of land, the project focuses on the production of industrial modular units, components, and related equipment. From project launch to trial operations, construction and commissioning have progressed efficiently and steadily.

At present, major civil works for Phase I have been largely completed, and trial production is underway. Once fully operational, the project is expected to generate annual sales revenue of more than 2.5 billion yuan ($360.08 million).

Building on this momentum, Grace has now committed an additional $303 million to develop Phase II of the base. The new phase will produce industrial modular units and components, as well as new energy modules for hydrogen and liquefied natural gas. Spanning roughly 28.67 hectares, the Phase II project is expected to achieve an annual output of more than 250,000 metric tons of high-end equipment upon full operation, adding about 3 billion yuan in annual output value.

In recent years, Qidong has been accelerating the upgrade of its marine engineering and shipbuilding industries toward high-end, green, intelligent, and international development, while expanding into frontier fields such as deep-sea and offshore equipment.