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Jiaxing-based Zhejiang Satellite Petrochemical Co inked a cooperation agreement with France-based Air Liquide, a Global Fortune 500 company, on March 20 to launch an integration project for new materials and new energy in Jiaxing, local media reported.

The new project is expected to be built in the Pinghu Dushan Port Economic Development Zone and has a designed annual production capacity of 1.74 million metric tons of new materials and new energy.

The project has received 11.5 billion yuan ($1.77 billion) in investment and is expected to generate 20 billion yuan in output and 1.5 billion yuan in taxes per year.

Satellite Petrochemical has decided to build the integration project in order to make full use of the hydrogen-rich resources produced during its manufacturing process, according to Gao Jun, vice-president of the company.

Chen Xing, director of Air Liquide's hydrogen energy business in China, said that the company was attracted by the high-quality hydrogen-rich resources, the advantageous location of Dushan Port, and the project's influence on surrounding areas such as Zhejiang, Shanghai, and other cities.

The new materials industry is one of two strategic pillar industries in Pinghu, and last year, despite the COVID-19 outbreak, the output and added value of the industry experienced increases of 46.5 percent and 68.8 percent. New materials have become an important driver for the city's high quality development.

In the first two months of this year, Pinghu's new materials industry maintained 72.5 percent and 72.2 percent year-on-year increases in output value and added value.