A signing ceremony for Porton's innovative drug manufacturing base is held in Zhangjiagang, Suzhou, Jiangsu province. [Photo/zjgonline.com.cn]

The Zhangjiagang Free Trade Zone in Zhangjiagang, a county-level city in Suzhou, East China's Jiangsu province, signed an agreement with Porton Pharma Solutions Ltd on Feb 21.

The agreement will see the company set up its innovative drug manufacturing base in the zone.

The 5-billion-yuan ($726.28 million) facility will mainly develop and produce innovative drug intermediates and active pharmaceutical ingredients.

Han Wei, Party secretary of Zhangjiagang, said biomedicine is one of the city's strategic emerging industries and that Porton's new base will boost the sector's high-quality growth. He added that local governments will create a first-class business environment to facilitate the construction of the manufacturing base.

Headquartered in Southwest China's Chongqing, Porton specializes in providing comprehensive services to global pharmaceutical companies and innovative drug research and development centers.