The Baoding High-tech Industrial Development Zone (Suitable E-Cat Base)

I’ve been trying to find out more about the agreement to form a Sino-USA Industrial Park in Baoding we have discussed here between Cherokee Industrial Partners CEO Tom Darden, and Chinese officials and haven’t turned up much new, but I have found some interesting information on the ‘Baoding High-tech Industrial Development Zone’ established in the Chinese city in 1992.

There’s a profile of this zone on the China Knowledge website, and here is some information from it:

New energy is the dominant industry of Baoding HIDZ, which is known as the “Valley of Electricity” in China. In 2003, the zone was designated China’s only national industrial base for new energy and power equipment manufacturing by the Ministry of Science and Technology. The industrial output of new energy will reach an estimated RMB 100 billion in 2015 and RMB 200 billion in 2020.

The zone’s main strengths lie in solar photovoltaic equipment, wind power generation equipment, automatic controls for power systems and energy-conservation equipment manufacturing. There are over 200 enterprises in this sector. In 2011, the gross industrial output of the zone reached RMB 91.1 billion, 16% more than it realize in 2010 . . .

Baoding HIDZ has strong research capabilities in the energy field. Besides its research cooperation with North China Electrical Power University in the electric sector, Baoding HIDZ has also set up R&D relationships with institutes in the Netherlands, the U.S., Germany and the U.K. The zone is home to five national R&D centers.

While we don’t have many details about the agreement made between Tom Darden and the Chinese officials, it would seem that if you were wanting to set up a base in China for the development of a new energy technology, Baoding would be a logical place to establish operations. The industrial zone is divided into three sections within the city, and covers in total an area of 12.23 km2. Baoding is served by rail and expressways, and is less than 100 miles from Beijing, the nation’s capital, which lies to the northeast.

Right now the Baoding HIDZ is a home to major solar and wind industries, and we know that China has been pushing ahead with development of alternative energy production, becoming a world leader in those industries. It may be that the next stage of their energy development will be in the production of nickel reactors (aka E-Cats)