Investment destination

"Heilongjiang province is a rare virgin land without sufficient development and now is the best time to invest," said Governor Li.

Li said Heilongjiang is now implementing the "Ha-Da-Qi industrial corridor" development program. Covering an area of more than 900 sq km in Harbin, Daqing and Qiqihar, the corridor will have a total investment of more than 220 billion yuan.

He also said a new coal and electricity zone is forming in the eastern cities such as Hegang, Jixi, Shuangyashan, Jiamusi and Mudanjiang.

"We will give full support to those enterprises investing in the Ha-Da-Qi industrial corridor and in the eastern coal and electricity base by offering incentives in land utilization, taxation and other aspects," Li said.

Heilongjiang also sees continued development in the farming, animal husbandry and food processing industries.

"These sectors will also be the priority fields for investment," said the governor.

The financial industry in Heilongjiang is also developing fast and opening wider to the world. It will be increasingly attractive to foreign investors as the province adopts new policies to encourage foreign banks to begin operations.

To offer an excellent business environment for investors, Li said the province has made heavy investment in improving its infrastructure, especially the transportation facilities.

Since the 11th Five-Year Plan period (2006-2010), Heilongjiang has implemented a plan to accelerate the pace of building highways, rail lines, waterways and airport facilities.

Major projects under construction or planning include the Harbin-Dalian Railway Passenger Line, Harbin-Qiqihar Express Railway and others that will involve a total investment of about 150 billion yuan.

To date, the province has more than 1,000 km of expressways.

(China Daily August 20, 2008)