The Qingdao West Coast New Area (WCNA) hosted a ceremony on Feb 8, announcing that the Weichai Marine Equipment Manufacturing Center as well as 124 key projects valued 88.97 billion yuan ($13.98 billion) have officially started construction.
There was one main venue and seven branch venues for the ceremony, which was held online. Government officials and business executives were in attendance.
![1644393584920070427.jpg 2.911_副本.jpg](http://subsites.chinadaily.com.cn/shandong/qingdao/xihaian/att/20220209/1644393584920070427.jpg)
A ceremony is held on Feb 8, announcing that the Weichai Marine Equipment Manufacturing Center as well as 124 key projects valued 88.97 billion yuan ($13.98 billion) have officially started construction in the Qingdao West Coast New Area. [Photo/WeChat account: qdxihaianfabu]
Intelligent manufacturing, HQ economy, marine biology, and infrastructure construction are among the 125 main initiatives.
The Weichai Marine Equipment Manufacturing Center project is worth 1.5 billion yuan and will cover 115,000 square meters of construction space. It is expected to be finished and become operational in 2025.
![1644393669876033124.jpg 2.922_副本.jpg](http://subsites.chinadaily.com.cn/shandong/qingdao/xihaian/att/20220209/1644393669876033124.jpg)
A rendering of the Weichai Marine Equipment Manufacturing Center, which is located in the Qingdao West Coast New Area [Photo/WeChat account: qdxihaianfabu]
The number of significant projects invested in the WCNA stands highest among Qingdao, according to preliminary data.
This year, the WCNA will receive 750 projects worth 260 billion yuan and will introduce more than 20 investment projects from the world's top 500 companies.