Airbus to set up China research center to boost innovation

BEIJING, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Airbus will establish the Airbus China Research Center in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, to strengthen the company's footprint and innovation partnerships in China, the company announced Friday.

The Airbus and Suzhou Industrial Park signed a framework agreement on Friday on the establishment of the center. The new move by Airbus is aimed at reaffirming its long-term commitment to cooperating with and investing in China, according to Airbus China.

"China not only has a promising aviation market, but also has advanced technological advantages in many fields," said George Xu, executive vice president of Airbus and chief executive officer of Airbus China.

"Airbus hopes to jointly contribute to the high-quality development of China's aviation industry by taking advantage of the high-quality business environment, unique industry chain and talent pool here," Xu said.

The Airbus China Research Center is located in China's Yangtze River Delta, one of the country's economic hubs.

It will carry out research work on advanced technologies, such as hydrogen energy infrastructure, advanced manufacturing, and the aviation industry's upgrading with digitalization and intelligence. It is due to start operations in 2023, said the company.

Established in 1994, Suzhou Industrial Park has attracted a dozen high-tech enterprises in fields such as AI, biomedicine, nanotechnology and intelligent manufacturing.