The Beijing Technological and Economic Development Area (BTEDA) was a big winner during the recent International High-tech Industries Week from May 8 to 12.
The BTEDA signed 19 contracts with a total investment of 1.7 billion U.S. dollars with overseas investors from countries and regions including the U.S., Britain, the Netherlands, Finland, Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, involving bio-engineering, pharmaceuticals, electronics, and the information industry. The Finnish cell-phone giant Nokia plans to invest 1.2 billion U.S. dollars in setting up its own technological park in the area, while U.S.'s General Electric (GE) will invest in two more firms in the area, adding to the one they invested in last year. Also, European medical equipment manufacturers plan to build up their manufacturing bases for CT machines and X-ray facilities in the BTEDA, according to the area's managers.
In the last nine years, 564 enterprises came into the BTEDA with a total investment of 2.24 billion U.S. dollars, and 22 of the world's top 500 companies have chosen the site for business expansion. To date, bio-engineering, pharmaceuticals, packaging and printing, along with catering have developed into the area's main industries, the managers said.
The BTEDA, originally known as the Yizhuang Industrial Area, was the first of its kind in Beijing and is only 140 kilometers from Tanggu Port on the Bohai Sea.