Shanghai has released an ocean industry development plan spanning from 2026 to 2035, stepping up efforts to become a modern marine city and establish a robust ocean industry system.

According to the plan released by the General Office of Shanghai Municipal People's Government on Nov 17, the city aims to achieve steady growth in major ocean industries by 2030, significantly enhance its capacity for independent marine technological innovation and accelerate the cultivation of new quality productive forces, with its ocean industry system and spatial layout taking shape.

By 2035, the city seeks to become an internationally advanced modern marine city, ranking among the top global coastal cities in terms of comprehensive strength of ocean industry, the plan says.

The plan outlines a spatial strategy focusing on the dual-core integrated development of Changxing Island and Lin-gang Special Area, with the former becoming a world-class marine equipment hub and modern shipbuilding base and the latter being developed into an international maritime gateway under the Belt and Road Initiative that prioritizes the advancement of ship propulsion systems, deep-sea equipment, marine pharmaceuticals and bioproducts, and marine renewable energy.

Shanghai will develop a marine industry belt along the rivers, coasts and bays in the city, cultivate a corridor for the development of modern marine services, and establish functional industrial parks for the marine industry, with Lin-gang Special Area as key nodes, the plan says.

To strengthen the ocean industry, the plan prioritizes the development of high-tech vessels, such as ultra-large LNG carriers and cruise ships, and aims to enhance the high-end marine engineering equipment product system.

According to the plan, efforts will be made to upgrade basic shipping services, enhance Shanghai Port's transport services, and expand the supply of bonded fuel oil, LNG, and green methanol, while noting the need to develop marine tourism with a focus on promoting the high-quality development of the international cruise economy and sustainable development of marine tourism resources.

The plan highlights the need to foster and expand emerging marine industries such as marine new energy, marine electronics and information, marine new materials, and marine pharmaceuticals and bioproducts.

It underscores the importance of planning for forward-looking future marine industries in terms of deep-sea resources and deep-sea integrated innovation. It is important to accelerate efforts in making breakthroughs in key technologies such as deep-sea sensors and oceanic communication and navigation.

As a key task for developing the ocean industry, it also states that Shanghai will build world-class shipbuilding and marine engineering equipment industrial clusters, develop a highly advanced modern shipping service system, and establish an innovative ecosystem for emerging marine industries.

The city will strengthen the development of marine innovation platforms, enhance the independent innovation capabilities of marine science and technology, and support the innovative development of marine-related enterprises.

Additionally, Shanghai will accelerate the construction of marine infrastructure projects, optimize the layout of supporting facilities related to the marine sector, develop platforms for marine specialty industries, and establish digital marine infrastructure.

In terms of opening-up in the marine industry, Shanghai will actively participate in the global cooperation in the marine industry, enhance the service capabilities of the marine industry and supply chain, strengthen collaboration with Belt and Road countries and regions, and support enterprises in expanding overseas.