The Sixth Qingdao Multinationals Summit is held in Qingdao, Shandong province. [Photo/Dazhong Daily]

The Promotion Conference for Shandong Development Zones, a part of the Sixth Qingdao Multinationals Summit (QMS), was held on June 18. It attracted representative of business organizations and multinational companies (MNCs) from Saudi Arabia, Japan, Germany and Turkey, who came in search of new growth opportunities.

In recent years, the development zones in Shandong have seen an increasing rapid pace in high-quality development. With a limited 6.4 percent land area of the province, these zones host nearly half of the province's industrial enterprises above designated size and account for 72.3 percent of the province's total foreign trade.

Veolia, a 170-year-old MNC and the only Fortune Global 500 company specializing in environmental services and resource management, sees vast cooperation potential with Shandong. 

"We would like to deepen our collaboration in the green industry, and help boost the province's green, low-carbon transformation," said Huang Xiaojun, the company's executive vice-president and chief representative in China.

Since entering Shandong's market in 2001, when it opened a store in Qingdao, Metro Group has successfully operated seven stores in six cities, including Jinan, Qingdao, Yantai, Linyi, Weifang, and Zibo. The company's CEO, Tino Zeiske, said, "We are not only witnesses but also active participants in Shandong's economic development."

Shandong, especially Qingdao, has great potential in smart logistics, home appliance and agricultural technology innovations, aligning with Saudi Arabia's development focus, according to Osama Kokandy, executive director of the Saudi-Southeast Asia Business Council.

"We are eager to participate in major projects related to these fields in Shandong and play a more important role in sustainable development and new energy," he added.

Following this QMS, Shandong will host 112 matchmaking promotion events, inviting all types of MNC leaders to its development zones for further cooperation.

Shandong development zones are dedicated to high-quality development. [Photo/Dazhong Daily]