A ceremony was held in Foshan, Guangdong province yesterday to mark the start of various major construction projects in the city.
According to official data cited by Nanfang Daily and other media outlets, the southern Chinese city is planning to launch 628 provincial and municipal-level construction projects in 2026, which have a combined investment of 872.81 billion yuan (US$127.52 billion).
In total, Foshan’s annual planned investment in 2026 is anticipated to reach 120.61 billion yuan, a figure that is consistent with the 120 billion yuan or higher benchmark that has been consistently set in previous years.
Of the more than 600 projects that are taking place this year, 105 of them are infrastructure-based ones that have a total investment of 388.96 billion yuan (US$56.83 billion). Meanwhile, 449 projects are related to industry, with an investment rate of 403.74 billion yuan (US$58.98 billion). The remaining 74 projects, which are connected to public welfare, have a cumulative investment total of 80.1 billion yuan (US$11.7 billion).
For the first quarter of this year, Foshan is looking to carry out 101 construction projects, which have a cumulative investment amounting to roughly 87.31 billion yuan (US$12.75 billion).
[See more: Guangdong is aiming to double its GDP by 2036]
Among the 71 industrial projects slated to begin in the first quarter, around 60 percent of them are connected to high-end manufacturing and other “new productive forces” such as AI and smart logistics. Some of the projects include an embodied intelligence robot data training centre and a ZTO Express Greater Bay Area (GBA) Integrated Air-Ground Smart Operations Centre.
Meanwhile, 11 of the first quarter projects deal with education and healthcare. For instance, a project taking place in Chanchen district’s Sanlongwan Senior High School will see the institution offer 1,150 senior high school slots in the short-run and 2,640 slots in the long-run.
Similarly, the expansion of the Eighth People’s Hospital in Nanhai District is expected to improve the complex’s healthcare resources and facilities, benefiting more residents.
Nineteen infrastructure projects that have a collective investment of more than 50 billion yuan (US$7.3 billion) are scheduled to begin construction in the first quarter as well. They include an expansion to the Guangsan Expressway between Guangzhou and Foshan, and a 220-kilovolt power transmission and transformation project in northern Foshan.
Sixteen out of the 101 projects commencing in the first quarter were situated in Foshan’s Chancheng district, with investment totalling 6.83 billion yuan (US$997.91 million). Nanhai district reported 25 projects that had an investment of 11.1 billion yuan (US$1.62 billion). Other projects were located in Shunde district, which had 23 projects and an investment of 10.81 billion yuan (US$1.58 billion); Gaoming district, which had 15 projects and an investment of 5.12 billion yuan (US$748.07 million), and Sanshui District, which had 17 projects and an investment of 7.1 billion yuan (US$1.03 billion). Meanwhile, 5 projects were directly under the auspices of the municipal government, with a total of 46.33 billion yuan (US$6.76 billion) allocated to them.
Work on such projects has been taking place at a breakneck pace, with the authorities reporting that 15 of the projects continued construction throughout Chinese New Year. Similarly, 79 of them resumed work ahead of schedule, while another 22 projects scheduled to begin later this year were launched in the first quarter.
