As numerous provinces and cities race to establish a presence in the commercial space sector, smaller cities are also seeking their own niche within this burgeoning industry. In July of this year, Chizhou released a specialized policy dedicated to commercial aerospace, marking a significant step. By early September, the "Chizhou-made" Zhishenxing-1 Yao-1 rocket completed its maiden flight with all systems operating normally, achieving its test objectives and marking a complete success for the mission. Later that same month, the "Rocket Supermarket" project being built by Aerospace Yilong in Chizhou was scheduled for delivery, further solidifying the city's commitment to the sector. After six years of dedicated exploration, Chizhou is now providing a viable roadmap for small and medium-sized cities aiming to break into the commercial aerospace industry.

Securing a Place in Core Manufacturing and Key Production Capacity

The commercial space field, particularly core segments like rocket manufacturing, requires substantial investment in fixed assets and continuous, significant funding for research and development. Compared to other industries, entering the commercial space sector is a considerably more challenging proposition for smaller cities. Chizhou’s initial step into this industry was to secure its position in the core of the commercial space supply chain: rocket final assembly and engine testing. In September 2020, the private rocket company Galactic Energy officially established its project for the annual production of 24 "Zhishenxing" liquid-fueled rockets in Chizhou's Wanjiang Jiangnan New Industry Concentration Area. Six years later, on September 1, 2026, at 10:00 AM, the Zhishenxing-1 Yao-1 successfully launched from the Dongfeng Commercial Space Innovation and Test Zone in Jiuquan, smoothly entering its predetermined orbit as programmed. Notably, this "Chizhou-made" rocket was anchored in a frontier area of rocket development from its design phase: reusable rocket technology. This technology is seen as key to effectively reducing rocket manufacturing costs in the future, thereby lowering launch service fees and providing the necessary launch capacity for the large-scale deployment of satellite constellations.

During a visit in March, Yicai reporters toured Galactic Energy's R&D and manufacturing base for the "Zhishenxing-1" liquid-fuel carrier rocket in Chizhou. An engine process engineer at the base explained that Chizhou is responsible for producing the control valves for both Galactic Energy's solid and liquid rockets, as well as the attitude and orbit control propulsion systems. Essentially, all components for the entire liquid rocket are assembled at this base. Yicai learned that the primary cost of the Zhishenxing-1 Yao-1 launch vehicle comes from its engines, with each engine costing approximately 5-6 million yuan. The cluster of seven engines combined with the entire aft section costs around 40-50 million yuan. Adding the first-stage oxygen tank and kerosene tank, the main manufacturing cost of the rocket's first stage is roughly 100 million yuan, which constitutes a significant portion of the total vehicle cost. The staff member noted that if the first stage is successfully recovered, the cost of manual refurbishment is essentially negligible for the overall rocket cost. Therefore, recovery verification for liquid rockets corresponds to substantial cost-reduction potential.

Amidst this push for rapid production capacity, the concepts of "Rocket Supermarkets" and "Satellite Supermarkets" are gaining traction. A "Rocket Supermarket" integrates the entire process—from parts and components to subassemblies, finished products, testing, and launch—using a modular and low-cost manufacturing approach for the rocket's design, production, and manufacturing. During the research visit, Wen Zhongliang, the project manager at the Aerospace Yilong rocket project site in Chizhou, told Yicai that the "Rocket Supermarket" concept was originally proposed by Sui Guofa, founder of Aerospace Yilong. Traditionally, rocket design and production were custom-built for each model, using dedicated production lines and tooling. From a production efficiency standpoint, this cannot meet the current demand for batch rocket production. The team visited many places when selecting a site for this project. During their first round of communication with Chizhou, they immediately recognized the city's strong understanding of the rocket industry, particularly in commercial rocket manufacturing, and that the infrastructure and policy conditions offered were precisely what the enterprise needed.

"In our view, this is the best-geologically-located plot in the zone. It was originally a rocky hill. When they were excavating the foundation, I stood by and watched—after digging two meters down, they hit solid stone, the excavator was throwing sparks, and below that was bedrock," Wen Zhongliang told reporters. He explained that a factory built on this geological foundation will be extremely stable, which is beneficial for the operational stability of large equipment weighing hundreds or thousands of tons, preventing precision drift for years to come. Additionally, the plot is adjacent to a major transportation artery and not far from the local planned port, offering favorable logistics conditions. Yicai learned that this base is primarily for producing large rockets with a 5-meter diameter. In an unfueled state, the rocket's dry weight is relatively light, making land transport feasible. Recently, Wen Zhongliang told reporters that the first phase of Aerospace Yilong's "Rocket Supermarket" project in Chizhou, covering over 50,000 square meters of factory space, is expected to be completed and delivered in September. Once fully operational, the first phase will produce 10 rockets annually. With all three phases fully operational, the goal of producing 100 rockets per year will turn from blueprint into reality.

Accelerating Industry Cluster Formation in Chizhou

An industry insider previously told Yicai that typically, satellite companies procure launch services, and rocket companies provide the launch capacity. Currently, the private commercial rocket sector is in a stage of key technological breakthroughs and industry capacity ramping. The rocket final assembly and development segment can drive the aggregation of upstream and downstream supply chains, attracting satellite development companies, which in turn draws payload and material companies to establish a presence nearby. During a research visit in March, Yicai reporters saw a several-meter-long panoramic map of the commercial space industry chain on the wall of a meeting room at the Jiangnan New Industry Concentration Area management committee. The detailed chart, which covered almost an entire wall, illustrated the different segments of the entire commercial space industry chain and their corresponding major companies. In that office, Jiang Man, deputy director of the zone's Investment Promotion Bureau No. 5, told Yicai that when Chizhou engages with companies and projects across the industry chain, it first preliminarily determines their position within the chain to better understand how the project will contribute to nurturing the local industrial ecosystem. The purpose is to be more precise about the kind of support these enterprises need when engaging with them.

Chizhou initiated the compilation of its commercial space industry development plan and drew up the industry chain map in 2024, also clarifying its "One Body, Two Wings, Three Bases" development strategy. In terms of investment attraction, it has innovated models like "Fund + Industry" and "Chain Leader + Supporting," targeting key segments such as "Rockets, Satellites, Networks, and Terminals." The Jiangnan New Industry Concentration Area focuses on three primary sectors: rocket manufacturing, satellite payload manufacturing, and satellite data application. In rocket manufacturing, Galactic Energy serves as the chain leader. For satellite payload manufacturing, the city has attracted Xingyi Lianxin. Public information shows their Chizhou factory commenced operations in March. Xingyi Lianxin has developed four generations of space-borne base stations, two generations of space-borne routers, and China's first IoT NTN standard satellite IoT payload. The first phase of its Chizhou factory can meet an annual production demand of 300 satellite communication payload units, with the second phase set to further expand capacity to meet the demands of the national satellite internet construction market. In the future, the Chizhou plant will evolve into Xingyi Lianxin's mass production base for the national giant satellite internet constellation. As of August, the zone had gathered 23 upstream and downstream commercial space companies, with total investment reaching 19.26 billion yuan, covering the entire chain from rocket R&D and manufacturing, satellite payloads, aerospace new materials, space-based data services, to aerospace research and cultural tourism.

In April 2026, the Anhui Provincial Government General Office issued the "Anhui Province Action Plan for Accelerating the Development of the Commercial Space Industry (2026-2028)," explicitly supporting Chizhou in building a regional rocket shared testing center and a national-level aerospace materials testing and verification platform. In July, Chizhou officially issued the "Chizhou City Commercial Space Industry Three-Year Action Plan (2026-2028)," aiming to exceed a total industry chain scale of 10 billion yuan and gather more than 40 core enterprises by 2028. During the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, the Jiangnan New Industry Concentration Area will focus on five major directions: aerospace materials, satellite payloads, rocket manufacturing and launch, satellite data application, and aerospace cultural tourism.

Challenges Facing Smaller Cities in a Competitive Landscape

According to Yicai's analysis, the clustering of the commercial space industry in several domestic cities follows different models. Two are quite typical: some cities rely on the early national aerospace system layout and have their own industrial foundation in research and manufacturing; others, with no traditional aerospace industry heritage, have built their commercial space ecosystem almost from scratch through targeted investment attraction and policy support. For the latter, the ability to provide funding and policy support is a key reference for attracting commercial space enterprises. An industry insider told Yicai that different cities have different strategies for attracting commercial space projects: some tend to invest early and in small companies, betting on the growth of startups; others prioritize introducing chain leaders with stronger certainty. In terms of resource endowment, some cities have significant funding and shorter investment decision-making chains; while others may not be able to provide large financial support but can strive for supportive policy conditions for companies. In recent years, several Yangtze River Delta cities like Nanjing and Wuxi have intensified their efforts in the commercial space track, making regional competition increasingly fierce.

Chizhou, lacking both a traditional aerospace industry foundation and the geographical advantages of a launch site or sea launch port, also faces real-world challenges such as limited local financial resources. In response, Chizhou has chosen to leverage support from above and activate resources from below: on one hand, it actively seeks policy and resource support from national and provincial levels; on the other hand, it encourages local companies with relevant foundations to transform and participate in the commercial aerospace supply chain. The Action Plan proposes strengthening diversified funding sources. This includes establishing a "Starfield Exploration" industry guidance fund, connecting with Yangtze River Delta regional funds and new productivity investment platforms, actively applying for central budget investment and ultra-long-term special treasury bonds, and leveraging social capital for project investment and corporate incubation. To enhance its industry influence, it will proactively align with the province's commercial space industry layout and actively participate in forming a provincial-level commercial space industry alliance and technology innovation consortium.

Meanwhile, some local enterprises with supporting industrial foundations are also transitioning into the commercial space sector. A military-civilian high-tech enterprise specializing in wave-transparent composite materials told Yicai that it faces challenges such as intensified market competition and fluctuating raw material prices. They have been closely monitoring the development of the commercial space industry and actively promoting the expansion of their civilian business. In the future, the company will advance technology transfer and expand application scenarios. In terms of industry chain extension, they will expand upstream and downstream to build a complete industrial ecosystem.

Building an industrial ecosystem with scale and synergistic capabilities is no easy feat for small and medium-sized cities. In cultivating its commercial space industry ecosystem, Chizhou also faces challenges such as a shortage of skilled technical and research personnel. According to the Action Plan, Chizhou will focus on core areas such as commercial space final assembly and testing, rocket engine, payload and aerospace material development, and data applications, and will compile a talent catalog list for the commercial space field. It will also deepen school-enterprise cooperation, connect with key aerospace universities like Beihang University and Harbin Institute of Technology, establish internship and training platforms, target the cultivation of skilled and applied aerospace talent, and actively recommend and select outstanding engineers. The representative of the high-tech enterprise mentioned above told Yicai that they have established joint laboratories with relevant research institutes and brought in multiple experts for technical guidance. They are also cooperating with universities, setting up a provincial-level postdoctoral research station to attract research talent. "Comparatively speaking, big cities have a better research foundation and potentially better compensation. The appeal of a small city for talent might lie in the stage of technology transformation and generating results from that application."