Cargo drones loaded with plums land at Wushan Airport in Wushan county, Southwest China's Chongqing, July 2, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]

Chongqing, a megacity in Southwest China, plans to build a 100-billion-yuan ($14.06 billion) aerospace information industry cluster by 2027 to address the governance needs of large urban centers, local authorities announced at the Aerospace Information Industry International Ecosystem Conference on Tuesday.

The Chongqing Development and Reform Commission said the city will leverage its strengths in application scenarios to create a national pilot area for the large-scale application of the Beidou Navigation Satellite System. The initiative will focus on infrastructure, scientific and technological innovation, industrial chains, application demonstrations and industrial ecology. Plans also include establishing a national-level aerospace information industry innovation center and a national space-time big data center.

"Chongqing will become a major base for aerospace information industry infrastructure, an innovation hub, an industrial development cluster and a leader in application services in the country," said Gao Jian, director of the commission.

Gao said Chongqing has already integrated such technology in various sectors, including geological disaster prevention, Yangtze River navigation, manufacturing and urban management. As a key location along the upper reaches of the Yangtze, Chongqing serves as a strategic hub in China's western development programs and the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle.

In recent years, Chongqing has emerged as a leader in the aerospace information industry, implementing several government guidelines and projects and establishing specialized industrial parks focused on Beidou applications and satellite internet. The city is home to more than 100 related companies, including Beidou Intelligent Connected Vehicle Technology and Chongqing OneSpace Technology, China's first private company licensed to design and manufacture carrier rockets.

Liu Jingnan, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering and director of the National Satellite Navigation System Engineering Technology Research Center, highlighted Chongqing's role as a model for the development of the aerospace information industry.

"Chongqing has played a demonstrative role in the aerospace information industry, and its model can be replicated in other cities," he said. "This is why so many space information companies are converging here."

Chongqing is also developing a world-class intelligent connected new energy vehicle industrial cluster. In the first half of the year, the city led the nation in auto production, new energy vehicle production growth and sales of high-end models, according to the Chongqing Economic and Information Technology Commission.

Zhan Zhangsong, assistant to the president of Chang'an Automobile and general manager of the Chang'an Forward-looking Technology Research Institute, expressed interest in integrating aerospace technology in intelligent connected vehicles and autonomous driving.

"Chang'an has collaborated with related companies to incorporate this technology into our cars," he said. "In the future, customers will experience improved and smarter driving."