The Taicang High-Tech Industrial Development Zone recently received 11 million yuan ($1.7 million) from the Department of Finance of Jiangsu Province, local media reported on Aug 12.

The money was given as a bonus for Taicang's second-place ranking among the 29 provincial high-tech industrial zones in Jiangsu. The ranking was based on the zones' comprehensive development.

The Taicang high-tech zone is investing about 5 percent of its revenues into R&D. About 65.1 percent of the zone's industrial output came from high-tech companies, including over 300 national high-tech companies and more than 350 German firms.

The Taicang Sino-German Innovation Park, or Aviation Industry Park. [Photo/WeChat account: tcfbgw]

The area housing incubation centers and industrial parks spans more than 2 million square meters and is home to 21 national or provincial incubators and over 1,000 startup companies.

Northwestern Polytechnical University and Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University are currently building their campuses in the park.

In June, the zone announced a 3-year plan to deepen cooperation with German companies. The city is aiming to attract more than 80 new German companies within three years, bringing the total number of German firms in the zone to at least 420 by the end of 2023.