The groundbreaking ceremony of the East Industrial Park of New Materials for Special Engineering was held in Xincheng county, Laibin, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region on March 23.

The groundbreaking ceremony of East Industrial Park of New Materials for Special Engineering is held in Xincheng county, Laibin, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region on March 23. [Photo by Luo Wenlong/gx.people.cn]

The project is jointly set up by East Group, a global power management solutions supplier, Zhongyan Technology Co of China Building Materials Academy, the special materials research center of the National Building Materials Test Center, and Shenzhen Luji Building Materials Technology Co to develop and produce special materials that are in the forefront of the field of concrete materials science.

The project has a total investment of 2.3 billion yuan ($324.99 million). After completion, it is expected to achieve a total industrial output value of 4.5 billion yuan, a tax revenue of 360 million yuan, and create more than 600 new jobs.

Government leaders and guests lay the foundation for the project. [Photo by Luo Wenlong/gx.people.cn]

The investment for the first phase of the project was 1.45 billion yuan, of which 650 million yuan was invested to build a basic materials production base with an annual output of 1 million tons, and 800 million yuan was used to build supporting freight logistics terminals, dedicated transport tunnels, as well as limestone raw material mines. The second phase will invest 850 million yuan to build a special engineering and concrete self-repairing new materials innovation park, which will have the ability to produce a full range of relevant products with a capacity of 2 million tons per year.

In addition, East Group will establish a postdoctoral mobile station and an academician expert workstation, as well as carry out special training classes with local technical schools to train designated industrial workers.

Xincheng county is rich in mineral resources and has large limestone reserves. The completion and commissioning of the project will help transform the resource advantage into an economic advantage.

"The completion and development of this project will not only promote employment in Xincheng and generate tax revenue, but also help promote poverty alleviation and achieve a win-win situation," said Li Zhaohui, the county head of Xincheng.

Guests visit the project briefing board and listen to the introduction. [Photo by Luo Wenlong/gx.people.cn]