A panoramic view of Wuhan New City. [Photo/WeChat account of Optics Valley of China]

The Wuhan New City, with a total area of 719 square kilometers, mainly includes the East Lake High-tech Development Zone (also known as Optics Valley of China, or OVC). On Feb 20, OVC released a series of its accomplishments regarding the construction of the Wuhan New City over 2023.

Last year, the valley's GDP grew by 4.7 percent, reaching a total of 271.5 billion yuan ($37.82 billion). The top 10 iconic projects along the central axis of Wuhan New City were also fully launched in 2023.

Over the last year, OVC initiated the construction of 107 projects with a combined investment of over 100 million yuan. It also completed 176 projects with an investment of over 100 million yuan, and its fixed asset investment reached more than 120 billion yuan, ranking fourth among all other national high-tech zones.

The 2023 OVC Global Industry Partner Conference. [Photo/WeChat account of Optics Valley of China]

At the 2023 OVC Global Industry Partner Conference, the global industry partner three-year action plan for building the optics valley of the world was implemented, and six major project contracts (each with an investment of over 10 billion yuan) were inked.

In 2023, the valley's total funds for industrial projects in place reached 64.6 billion yuan, and its direct foreign investment reached $680 million, both ranking first in Wuhan. Over that same period, the number of market entities in the valley exceeded 200,000, including over 136,000 enterprises and the addition of seven listed companies.

Additionally, five national large-scale scientific facilities have been built or are currently under construction in OVC.