The Dandong government decided to set up the Dagushan Economic Zone after the Liaoning Coastal Economic Belt was made a part of the national development strategy in July 2009. The government wants to take advantage of Haiyanghong Port, still under construction in Dagushan, to develop a near-port heavy chemicals industrial cluster in the area and push tourism growth at the same time.

Location advantage and convenient traffic

The Dandong zone is located in the west of the city on the northern coast of the Yellow Sea and is an important link between Dandong and Dalian. The 100-mt Haiyanghong Port will become an important port of the Northeast Asia International Shipping Center and a new gateway in the eastern part of Northeast China. The zone is planned at 498.2 square kilometers with a population of 118,000. The initial area approved by the provincial government is 34.9 sq km.

Solid industrial foundation with abundant resources

The Dandong Dagushan Economic Zone has 71.5 km of Yellow Sea coast and exceptionally good conditions for a natural deepwater seaport. The more than 100 varieties of aquatic products from the sea, including crabs, shellfish and prawns are sold to Japan, South Korea, the U.S. and Europe. The annual freshwater flow of the Dayang River is 3.2 billion cubic meters.

The area’s mountains, forests, rivers, springs, islands, wetlands and other natural resources are evenly distributed and the area attracts nearly one million tourists every year.

It also has a solid industrial foundation with a system that includes precision casting, textiles, apparel, machinery manufacturing, food processing, agriculture, trade, and wind power. In 2010, the zone had a GDP of 5.5 billion yuan, 150 million yuan in revenues, 4.05 billion yuan in fixed asset investments, 2.43 million dollars worth of foreign investment, 5.02 billion yuan in investments from other parts of China, and 31.5 million dollars worth of exports.

Development prospect

The provincial government’s goals for the economic zone are to make it: a window on the outside world for Northeast China; an important, strategic supporter of the Liaoning Coastal Economic Belt; an important heavy chemicals industrial base of the northern Yellow Sea economic region; a modern port that links Dandong and Dalian; and a medium-sized eco-tourist city with a population of about 500,000.

In the future, priority will be given to the 100-mt Haiyanghong port, near-port industries, the heavy chemicals park, the logistics park, and the casting, processing and valve park. Within 20 years, the economic zone’s GDP is expected to reach 150 billion yuan and revenues, 12 billion yuan. The zone has been selected by the Lioaning government as a key development and support area. It can fall under preferential policies for revitalizing the old industrial bases of the Northeast, preferential policies for the Liaoning economic belt, and other preferential national, provincial and municipal policies.

Web: www.dddgs.gov.cn

Blueprint of Dandong Dagushan Economic Zone

Image of Haiyanghong Port

Development prospect