In recent years, Xiangtan City has driven high-quality economic development through innovation, transforming its industrial landscape from the "old trio" of ordinary steel, fuel-powered vehicles, and real estate to the "new trio" of specialty steel, electric vehicles, and advanced batteries. This shift has propelled the city toward becoming a hub for advanced manufacturing, earning it a spot on China's Top 100 Advanced Manufacturing Cities list for four consecutive years, according to a Xiangtan municipal government official during the "New Industrialization Media Research Tour" in Hunan organized by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
Since the 14th Five-Year Plan, Xiangtan has strengthened its dominance in three key industries: advanced steel materials, new energy vehicles, and advanced energy materials and batteries. The advanced steel materials sector, centered around Xiangtan Iron and Steel Group (Xianggang), has expanded into high-value-added products and downstream industrial chains through projects like the Advanced Metal Materials Deep Processing Industrial Park and Yili Steel Logistics Park, achieving over 100 billion yuan in revenue.
The new energy vehicle and supporting industries, led by companies such as Geely Auto, have seen rapid growth with the accelerated construction of the Chang-Zhu-Tan New Energy Vehicle City. This has created an industrial matrix integrating both fuel-powered and new energy vehicles, as well as passenger and commercial vehicles. Annual vehicle production surged from 170,000 units in 2020 to nearly 600,000 this year, with new energy vehicles accounting for over 50%.
The advanced energy materials and battery sector has also flourished, with Hunan Yuneng ranking among China's Top 500 Private Manufacturing Enterprises for three consecutive years and maintaining the top market share in lithium iron phosphate for five years.
Xiao Lingyun, Deputy Director of Sales at Xianggang, highlighted the company's leadership in medium and heavy steel plates, boasting the strongest technical capabilities, fastest delivery, and most comprehensive product range in China. Xianggang's rise coincided with China's WTO accession in 2001 and its emergence as the "world's factory."
"Becoming the world's factory required vast raw materials, and we seized this opportunity," Xiao recalled. Initially, a major manufacturer nearby only sourced ordinary steel from Xianggang, importing high-strength steel from Europe with a six-month lead time. However, after a quality issue with European imports, the manufacturer tested Xianggang's high-strength steel and found it met standards, with shorter delivery times and half the cost. Since then, Xianggang has replaced imports in this segment.
Xianggang has achieved breakthroughs in import substitution for products like ultra-thick EH500 ship plates, XG1100 ultra-high-strength steel, and X65QO submarine pipeline steel, with some innovations being world-firsts. In 2015, it pioneered 80mm-thick EH47BCA1 high crack-arresting steel, reaching global top-tier standards. By 2020, it mastered core production technologies for high-heat-input welding steel, previously monopolized by foreign firms, and successfully applied 5.5Ni steel in ultra-low-temperature environments (-196°C). It also resolved critical technical challenges in producing 210mm-thick A517/EH690 rack steel and vanadium-added hydrogen-resistant steel 12Cr2Mo1VR(H).
Looking ahead to the 15th Five-Year Plan, Xiangtan will prioritize high-quality development, focusing on upgrading, innovation, expansion, and efficiency. Long Zhongyi, Director of Xianggang's Digital Intelligence Research Institute, stated that the company aims to become a national leader in intelligent manufacturing by advancing high-end, smart, and green production.