Leshan: The Industrial Counterattack of a Cultural and Tourism City
If you think of Leshan, what comes to mind? Is it the Leshan Giant Buddha, the world's largest stone-carved sitting Maitreya Buddha? Or Mount Emei, one of the four famous Buddhist mountains? Perhaps it's the crispy and sweet glazed duck?
While many people's impressions of this small city in western Sichuan still revolve around its majestic mountains and mouth - watering cuisine, Leshan has long been sprinting on the track of cutting - edge technology, carving out a new territory on its own.
Don't underestimate Leshan, a city with a GDP of only 253.3 billion and ranking 8th in Sichuan. It has quite a few cutting - edge technology industries in its grasp. Any one of them can make a name in the industry.
For this small city, the key to achieving an industrial comeback is not to follow the trends blindly but to conduct a sober self - assessment, knowing what it has and where it should go.
The New Energy "Magic" of the Old Chemical Industry
Leshan is a land with an industrial gene.
In Wutongqiao, Leshan, the Yongli Soda Manufacturing Company of Hou Debang and his partner Fan Xudong was once located. Here, Hou Debang completed China's No. 001 patent - the world - famous "Hou's Soda Process", breaking the foreign technology monopoly and laying the foundation for China's chemical industry.
Later, the people of Leshan erected his statue on the banks of the Minjiang River in the Leshan Chemical Industrial Park. Hou Debang once said, "If people with yellow hair and blue eyes can achieve it, we with black hair and black eyes can definitely do it too." His words back then were so inspiring that they are still engraved in the industrial spirit of this land today.
Today, also in Wutongqiao, Leshan, opposite Hou Debang's statue, another pioneer of the era is emerging, which is the chemical industry leader Fuhua Chemical. Since 2016, this enterprise has been continuously ranked among the top 20 in the global agrochemical industry. Its glyphosate technical product has been recognized as a "single - champion product" by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, with its production capacity ranking among the top three in the world and its ion - exchange membrane caustic soda production capacity ranking first in Southwest China.
Adhering to Hou Debang's maxim that "there is no waste in the field of chemistry", the chemical experts in Fuhua Chemical have been working day and night to overcome one industry problem after another. The most influential one is the "mother liquor", the high - organic - phosphorus and salt - containing wastewater generated during the glyphosate production process. Through their self - developed integrated treatment technology for the mother liquor, they have successfully converted 99% of the phosphorus resources into high - value - added products such as disodium hydrogen phosphate.
This breakthrough has also enabled Fuhua to ride on the new energy wave.
Currently, with the explosive growth of new energy batteries, the demand for lithium iron phosphate has soared. Relying on its self - produced disodium hydrogen phosphate, Fuhua has innovatively improved the traditional process and directly synthesized battery - grade iron phosphate. Every year, the phosphorus recovered from the glyphosate mother liquor alone can support the production of iron phosphate, which can be used to produce lithium iron phosphate.
It is known that the phosphorus in Fuhua Chemical's glyphosate mother liquor can produce about 150,000 tons of disodium hydrogen phosphate annually. According to the calculation that producing 1 ton of iron phosphate theoretically requires about 0.796 tons of sodium dihydrogen phosphate, the waste mother liquor of Fuhua Chemical can synthesize 200,000 tons of iron phosphate, which can then provide battery - grade iron phosphate for more than 200,000 tons of lithium iron phosphate. In 2024, its iron phosphate production accounted for nearly 10% of the market share.
In the Wutongqiao chemical industrial park, the industrial cluster effect is constantly expanding. In 2024, the output value reached 32.4 billion. At the same time, 36 green chemical projects are in reserve, with a planned total investment of 62.1 billion. After completion, the new output value can reach 106.9 billion, including 12 under construction, 14 signed, and 10 under negotiation.
For Fuhua Chemical, a Leshan enterprise, it clearly knows its own advantages and can combine the current development trends of emerging industries to conduct in - depth research on the vertical extension of the industrial chain, especially in the research and development of new energy technologies. The goal is to extend its advantages to high - end new materials, upgrading its traditional industrial gene into high - end manufacturing competitiveness, which is the right path for the long - term development of the enterprise.
Avoid the Red Ocean and Develop the Blue Ocean
Layout in new tracks is crucial for the industrial future of a city. However, new tracks are not created out of thin air. The key is to have a clear understanding of one's own existing advantages and choose the most suitable track.
The story of Sichuan Weilide Energy Co., Ltd. is an illustration of this idea.
This enterprise, which has been rooted in Leshan for 20 years, entered the new energy storage field in 2016. Facing the popular lithium - battery track at that time, Weilide "took a detour" and chose the all - vanadium redox flow battery.
Compared with lithium batteries, all - vanadium redox flow batteries are safer, have a longer lifespan, and are more environmentally friendly, making them particularly suitable for large - scale energy storage scenarios. Against the background of the rapid development of wind and photovoltaic power in China, how to store this unstable green power has become a pain point in the industry. Weilide spotted this gap.
"The vanadium - battery energy storage power station is like a giant 'power bank' that can balance the power grid," said Zhu Xiaoxing, the deputy general manager of the company. The all - vanadium redox flow battery industry belongs to the national strategic emerging industries, and Leshan has a good foundation for its development: local enterprises such as Desheng Vanadium and Titanium can provide vanadium materials, and companies such as Shangwei Co., Ltd. and Hill Electronics have supporting capabilities in cables and semiconductors.
The rise of Weilide has not only made itself a dark horse in the industry but also driven a number of upstream and downstream enterprises to settle in Leshan, gradually building a complete chain of "vanadium raw materials - vanadium new materials - vanadium new energy".
This may inspire many small and medium - sized cities: When it comes to industrial layout, capital and resources are important, but the key is to clearly understand one's own advantages and find an entry point that matches them in the segmented track. Avoiding the popular tracks can lead to victory.
The Hard - Core Cross - Border of the Bamboo Paper Hometown
In economics, there is a saying of the "queue - transfer dilemma": When a new window appears, those who are the first to leave the old queue are often those at the end of the line. The same is true for local development - When new opportunities come, those who can turn around quickly are often regions with less historical burden and the courage to start anew.
Jiajiang County in Leshan is such an example.
It is known as the "Hometown of Bamboo Paper for a Millennium". The bamboo paper - making technique has been passed down for a thousand years and was once as famous as Xuan paper from Anhui. However, in recent years, this county dominated by traditional industries has witnessed a remarkable industrial cross - border: Nuclear medicine, aviation composite materials, low - altitude economy... A huge industrial transformation is quietly taking place.
In the Jiajiang County Nuclear Technology Application Industrial Park, there is the world's largest and most comprehensive medical isotope production base - Sichuan Haitong Isotope Technology Co., Ltd.
In 2024, it solved the "bottleneck" problem in nuclear medicine and successfully developed lutetium - 177, breaking the monopoly of international giants. Sichuan Haitong has carried out extensive business cooperation with domestic leading original - research drug companies, and the new products will significantly reduce the cost of cancer treatment for the public.
In addition, production lines for 8 kinds of medical isotopes, including iodine - 125, phosphorus - 32, yttrium - 90, holmium - 166, rhenium - 188, and radium - 223, are operating simultaneously in Jiajiang. This time, Jiajiang stands at the high point of the nuclear medicine industry.
In the same year, Jiajiang introduced the Xingyuhang Advanced Composite Materials Intelligent Manufacturing Project, covering carbon fiber weaving, aircraft composite component manufacturing, and assembly. The reason this project chose Jiajiang was because of another local carbon fiber composite enterprise - Xinwanxing. The agglomeration effect of the industrial chain is enabling Jiajiang to steadily move towards the goal of becoming a "Western Aviation Composite Materials R & D and Manufacturing Base".
In January this year, Jiajiang also witnessed the signing of the headquarters of the Guangqi Advanced Low - Altitude Drone Industrial Chain, and 5 supporting enterprises were introduced simultaneously. So far, a prototype of a complete industrial ecosystem for drones has emerged here.
It should be noted that last year, Leshan clearly stated for the first time that it would build a low - altitude economy industrial chain, and Jiajiang is one of the main carriers. As the first main enterprise in the low - altitude industrial chain, Guangqi aims not to simply piece together upstream and downstream enterprises but to create a real industrial "ecosystem" here, improving the collaborative efficiency across the entire chain from demand, design, R & D, to manufacturing.
Leshan is well aware of its scarce advantages in developing the low - altitude economy. It has abundant airspace resources below 2000 meters, which are indispensable for the development of the low - altitude economy, drone applications, and testing scenarios. In addition, Leshan has actively equipped with a full set of testing facilities such as dedicated runways, hangars, and radar stations. During the drone design process, it can be tested at any time, allowing for simultaneous testing and rapid optimization of product R & D and manufacturing, which is more conducive to product R & D and system iteration and upgrading, thus attracting enterprises to settle.
For Leshan, the success of Jiajiang County's industrial development is not an isolated case. It stems from a clear understanding of its own resources and advantages, enabling it to reasonably layout the right industrial tracks, attract leading enterprises, and at the same time, do a good job in the supporting and service work of the entire industrial chain. By truly utilizing its scarce resources and transforming them into industrial advantages, Leshan can truly build its high - end manufacturing competitiveness.
The Role of the Government
For a long time, the cultural and tourism industry has brought glory to Leshan's economic development. However, Leshan is well aware that such a single industrial structure is not sufficient to support the improvement of its economic level.
Therefore, Leshan has proposed a dual - wheel - drive strategy of "strengthening the city through industry and revitalizing the city through culture and tourism", constructing a "241" industrial development system, that is, two 100 - billion - level advantageous industrial clusters, four characteristic industrial clusters, and a group of emerging industrial clusters in modern industry, so as to reshape Leshan's industrial gene and urban competitiveness.
Behind this, in addition to the strategic vision in industrial layout and investment promotion, the good service of the local government is also indispensable. Take the modern traditional Chinese medicine intelligent manufacturing industrialization project as an example. From signing the contract to efficient construction, it has enjoyed "nanny - style" service. Jiang Chong, the person - in - charge of the major project promotion working group in Leshan High - tech Zone, said, "We have established a project service working group, which is online all the time and provides 'one - on - one' service. Enterprises can focus on construction with peace of mind, and we will take care of the rest."
In recent years, Leshan has also been constantly striving to improve the efficiency of government services and continuously optimize the business environment. Leshan High - tech Zone has set up "immediate response" and "unable - to - handle" feedback windows, and implemented a "direct - access" service mechanism for enterprises, that is, getting things done with just one phone call.
At the same time, Leshan High - tech Zone has continuously promoted zero - cost business registration, implemented an integrated service of "start construction upon land acquisition + one - stop service for construction start" and an operating mechanism of "one - window acceptance, classified transfer, unified feedback, and one - stop fulfillment", enabling enterprises and the public to handle affairs with "at most one visit".
Leshan has also made great efforts to reduce the tax burden on enterprises. Take Sichuan Shuneng Minerals as an example. In the early stage of its transformation and upgrading, it faced great financial pressure. Hu Jiachuan, the financial person - in - charge of the company, said, "Fortunately, with the support of national policies, the enterprise can obtain financial subsidies through government rewards and special subsidies. At the same time, with the guidance of the tax department, we have timely enjoyed various tax and fee reductions. This funds have provided great help for the enterprise's transformation and upgrading."
It can be said that Leshan has set a very successful example for those cultural and tourism cities and cities that are stuck in traditional industries and have difficulty in achieving transformation and upgrading. It's not only cities with high administrative levels and abundant resources and funds that can attract high - end and emerging industries and build a favorable environment for investment. The key is that each city should find its own positioning and advantages, make reasonable layouts, and finally achieve success in the industrial track.
The industrial comeback of this small city is not accidental. Its story continues, and more surprises are on the way.
This article is from the WeChat official account "Golden Horn Finance", author: Wu Heng. Republished by 36Kr with permission.