Zhangjiagang in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu province secures 50 projects worth 43 billion yuan ($6.14 billion) at a promotion meeting held in Shanghai on June 15. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The port city of Zhangjiagang in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu province secured 50 projects worth 43 billion yuan ($6.14 billion) at the 2020 Zhangjiagang City Innovation and Development (Shanghai) Promotion Meeting held in Shanghai on June 15.

The 50 projects are mainly focused on areas of intelligent manufacturing, financial investment and integration of industry and city. They are expected to accelerate the transformation and upgrading of Shanghai and Zhangjiagang, and deepen mutually beneficial cooperation between the two cities.

With the opening of the Shanghai-Suzhou-Nantong Railway, Zhangjiagang will form a new development model by taking full advantage of the port and railway, creating a multimodal transport network composed of highways, railways and waterways, according to Pan Guoqiang, Party secretary of Zhangjiagang.

Pan added that this network will not only greatly improve traffic efficiency in the city, but also accelerate the integration of the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region, making Zhangjiagang a hot spot for Shanghai enterprises.  

"The meeting is expected to create more cooperation opportunities between Shanghai and Zhangjiagang," said Pan.

He added that the city is planning to speed up the construction of the Zhangjiagang High-speed Rail New Town, which is aimed at bolstering the city's integration into the YRD region. Zhangjiagang will also facilitate resource sharing between itself and Shanghai in areas such as medical care, education, elderly home care, culture and tourism.

The Zhangjiagang Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai made its debut at the meeting, which is aimed at promoting economic and social integration between the two cities.