Shanghai positions itself as nation's AI hub

Shanghai is looking to become China's hot-spot for artificial intelligence and wants to expand the industry scale in the city to more than 100 billion yuan ($15.06 million) by 2020, according to a new municipal plan issued. The Opinion on Promoting the City's Next Generation of AI Development was published on the municipal government website, outlining 21 measures to boost the industry. These include steps like forming a world class industry cluster, nurturing 10 benchmark AI innovative enterprises with substantial influence, building six AI innovative application demonstration areas and launching more than 100 application demonstration projects. "Shanghai's rich big data resources, wide application of smart technologies, sufficient industries, as well as its affluent research talents have laid a solid foundation for the development of the AI industry," said Chen Mingbo, director of the Shanghai Commission of Economy and Information Technology. According to Chen, although Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent, the trio of Chinese internet giants, are not based in Shanghai, the city could be the birthplace of AI unicorn companies, as its conditions are mature. But to achieve such a goal, Chen said Shanghai should deepen the integration of AI and related industries including high-end equipment, integrated circuits, biomedical, and automotive to establish a set of innovation centers for intelligent manufacturing and industrial internet. In addition, AI industrial clusters will be built across the city with different focuses like intelligent driving, intelligent robots, intelligent software and hardware. Tailor-made policies will be in place for attracting better talent both from home and abroad to Shanghai, and a strategic advisory committee for experts will be established to aid the city's AI planning and development, Chen said. "Shanghai is currently building an AI development alliance, and nearly 300 major enterprises, investment and financing institutions, as well as research institutions have been tapped. We will work on attracting global AI enterprises to locate their regional headquarters and innovation centers in Shanghai," Chen said. As a cutting-edge technology that is sought after worldwide, the AI industry is regarded a new growth engine for Shanghai, a city with special advantages in big database, industrial foundation, and sufficient talents from universities and institutions, according to Chen, adding that the massive data resources are the first and foremost element for developing AI technology.

China-Laos railway project set to be completed in 2021, despite challenges

Construction of the China-Laos railway is underway and the line will go into operation by the end of December 2021, a leader of the project told the Global Times. The 414-kilometer railway will link Kunming, capital of Southwest China's Yunnan Province, and Vientiane, capital of Laos. It is also part of the Trans-Asian Railway, a project designed as an integrated freight railway network across Europe and Asia. Since a groundbreaking ceremony for the railway was held in December 2015, concrete progress has been made in Laos in the past two years, Huang Hong, head of China-Laos railway commanding department under China Railway Group Ltd, told the Global Times. China Railway Group, along with its subsidiaries and other affiliates such as China Railway No.5 Group and China Railway International Group, are working on different parts of the railway. "The total length of our construction tender is 244.5 kilometers, including 45 tunnels and 99 bridges. As of mid-October, we've completed 14,925 meters in the channel excavation work," Huang said. Under a franchise agreement signed between China and Laos, the Laotian government provides policy support for the project while Chinese companies are responsible for 90 percent of the total construction work, Huang noted. "And the remaining 10 percent will be carried out by Laotian workers, in order to create more local jobs," he said. The investment in the project is about 40 billion yuan ($5.8 billion), 70 percent of which comes from Chinese investment and the rest from Laos, the Xinhua News Agency reported in August. Laos has been stepping up efforts to improve its infrastructure, as it is the only inland country in Southeast Asia and it still has limited transport options, noted a Chinese business representative in Laos. "The China-Laos railway will fix this problem and help lower logistics costs," said Chen Cuiying, general manager of a Laos-based subsidiary of Yunnan State Farms Group Co. For example, it costs about 900 yuan to transport 1,000 tons of rubber from Vientiane to Yunnan during the peak season for rubber production, which runs from July to December, Chen noted. "Though it remains unclear how the operator of the China-Laos railway will price cargo, it will cost 50 to 60 percent less to transport cargo by rail than by road," she told the Global Times on Monday. Joint efforts The Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation held in Beijing in May provided new impetus for the China-Laos rail project, as a slew of concrete construction plans were advanced, Xu Liping, an expert with the National Institute of International Strategy at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Monday. "However, it remains a project between two nations, and has not been considered as an intercontinental project extended to Thailand," he said. Huang, the chief commander, also noted that there is no timeline for the overall Trans-Asian Railway project. The integration of the China-Laos railway into the Trans-Asian Railway will certainly play a role in generating profits for countries along the route, but the countries involved have not yet started any talks on the matter, he said. Difficulties remain Despite the progress, the China-Laos rail project still faces some difficulties. For example, funds are not always allocated on time, and Laos lacks some of the needed construction materials like cement, Huang noted. "The poor transport conditions in the country also increase risks for the on-site work," he said. Given these challenges, the Laotian government should adopt some temporary policies to facilitate imports of related products, Xu noted. In addition, as Chinese workers are usually more efficient, it's necessary to provide some training programs for their Laotian co-workers to make sure both sides complete the project at the same time, he said. "Still, the project will play an exemplary role in the Belt and Road initiative and will showcase the enhanced connectivity among Southeast Asian countries, as well as bringing business benefits for local communities," he remarked.

Chinese-made electric buses join Chile's public transit fleet

Chile's Transport Minister Paola Tapia on Tuesday greeted the incorporation of the first batch of Chinese-made electric buses into the capital's public transit fleet. "We are advancing in quality for commuters by incorporating electric buses starting now, fulfilling our commitment to greater comfort and greater efficiency in the service and to caring for the environment," said Tapia. Manufactured by China's BYD corporation, the two 81-passenger buses are equipped with cushioned seats, air conditioning, Wi-Fi, charging outlets for mobile devices and a secure separate cabin for drivers. Transit authorities said they expect the new units to cut operating costs by some 70 percent, with electric buses consuming around 70 pesos (around 0.11 U.S. dollars) per km to run, compared to 300 pesos (around 0.47 U.S. dollars) for conventional diesel vehicles. "In 2018, we will have 90 of these buses in circulation and we will be pioneers in Latin America in electric mobility for public transit," said the minister. The new buses can be charged in just two to three hours, allowing the buses to take various routes throughout the day covering some 250 km, Tapia said. Chilean Energy Minister Andres Rebolledo also welcomed the new members of the capital's transportation system. "These first two electric buses are great news for a country like Chile, since the transport sector accounts for a third of the energy consumption," he noted.

Shanghai FTZ wins top honor in Asia Pacific Region

Shanghai Free Trade Zone was named among the Top Free Zones in Asia Pacific Region by Site Selection magazine, the official publication of the Industrial Asset Management Council, recently. Chen Xi, deputy director of Shanghai FTZ Administration, met Adam Jones Kelley, president of IAMC and expressed his gratitude for the zone winning the award. He hoped the zone can have more exchanges and establish cooperation with other FTZs in the world through IAMC. Chen said the award is a global recognition for the achievements and reforms the zone has made, and he told his guests that the FTZ is working hard to build free trade port and he welcomed Kelley to make investments in Pudong New Area. Kelley spoke highly of the achievements of the Shanghai FTZ, and said that he has witnessed the changes Shanghai has gone through since the 1980s. He would often refer to the successful cases of investment in the zone while introducing free trade zones. Next, IAMC will connect Shanghai FTZ with other FTZs and free trade ports in the world. At the end of the meeting, Kelley presented the award to Chen.

Cargo railway inking Finland and China opens

With more than 40 containers on it, the cargo train bound for Chinese inland city of Xi'an departed Kouvola, southeastern Finland, on Friday. It will take 17 days to run 9,000 km to cross the Eurasia continent, passing through countries including Russia and Kazakhstan, before reaching its final destination of the northwest China's Xi'an, one of the oldest cities in China. Compared with the normal sea freight, the cargo rail line can shorten the travel time by 30 days. NEW TRADE CHANNEL Goods packed in the containers are all made in Finland, ranging from machinery, timber, workwear to ship components, according to Jari Gronlund, chief operation officer of Unytrade company. Founded just in this summer, Unytrade especially serves the newly opened route, said Gronlund, who believes the only railway route linking Scandinavia and China will open a new channel to bring more Nordic products to the nations along the route. Olli-Pekka Hilmola, logistics professor at Lappeenranta University of Technology, told Finnish national broadcaster Yle that a regular train connection from Kouvola to China would be important to the Finnish economy. According to Li Zhao, Assistant of General Manager of Xi'an International Inland Port Investment &Development Group, the goods will be further transported to various markets in China after arriving in Xi'an. Being the main operator of the multinational project, the Group has outsourced the transportation in Finland to VR, the country's state-owned railway monopoly, and the other sections to the railway companies of Russia and Kazakhstan accordingly. As planned, a total of five trains would run between Kouvola and Xi'an by the end of this year. At the same time, a train would depart Xi'an towards Kouvola every week. Li said the running may start to pace up if the trade goes smoothly and hopefully a train of goods would be sent every day in the near future. ENHANCED INTEGRATION So far, hundreds of China-EU cargo trains have been running through the central Asia each year, but the new line diverted to Kouvola would serve as a new chapter for economic ties and cultural communication, said Murat Nurtleuov, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Finland. He reminded the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by China, which was later supported by dozens of countries especially in Asia and eastern Europe, saying now that Finland has been part of it, a new direction is found. By launching the railway route, said Chinese ambassador to Finland Chen Li "we have achieved the communication among the four countries, which are China, Finland, Kazakhstan and Russia, the connectivity in facilities, the smooth flow of trade activities, the financial integration as well as the commonality among the people."

Falling renewable energy costs enable new options for greening industry: report

The rapid cost reductions in renewable energy such as solar and wind power have opened a new range of possibilities to cut industrial carbon emissions, a report on renewable energy showed. Reducing long-term greenhouse gas emissions of the industrial sector is one of the toughest challenges for energy transition, said the report by the China Economic Information Service (CEIS), an affiliate of Xinhua News Agency, and the International Energy Agency (IEA). Cement, iron, steel and chemicals will be responsible for the bulk of industrial emissions in 2050, said IEA analyst Cedric Philibert, writer of the report. To increase the use of renewables in the industrial sector, the report pointed out that the recent fall in costs of solar photovoltaics (PV) and wind power may create new options for greening the industry, either directly from electricity or through the production of hydrogen-rich chemicals and fuels. While electrification can better integrate renewables into the power grid, hydrogen-rich chemicals that are easy to store and transport could serve as feedstock, process agents and fuel, according to the report. The hydrogen-rich chemicals can be produced in areas with abundant resources and shipped to consuming centers, opening the prospects for a new kind of international energy trade, the report added. The report also examined emerging technology options, as well as national and international policies that encourage development of renewable energy. China is a major source of industrial emissions, but a staunch supporter of renewable energy. According to the government's 2016-2020 plan, renewable energy could supply 1.9 trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity, accounting for 27 percent of total power generation by the end of 2020.