Foxconn's next stop, Anhui, has entered the provincial dispatch level

Foxconn's next investment location in mainland China will be Anhui.

A reporter from 21st Century Business Herald exclusively learned that the connection between Anhui and Foxconn has now entered the provincial scheduling level.

Recently, at the 12th session of the 12th Anhui Provincial People's Congress, the Anhui Development and Reform Commission pointed out in its report on work opinions for the second half of 2014 that in terms of attracting investment, it is necessary to strengthen dedicated tracking services for major projects. As a result of the investment promotion trip to Taiwan, the local government requires that the provincial tracking and scheduling of about 100 major investment projects such as Foxconn be focused on, and strive to sign contracts as soon as possible and implement them as soon as possible.

In fact, it is not surprising that Anhui is trying to win over Foxconn. In May this year, Anhui Provincial Party Secretary Zhang Baoshun led a trade delegation to Taiwan, and one of the important purposes of his trip was Foxconn. The itinerary shows that the Anhui delegation arrived in Taiwan on May 6, and on the evening of May 8, Zhang Baoshun and Hon Hai Group President Guo Taiming went to the Eslite Bookstore in Taiwan. The two chatted and laughed, and Zhang Baoshun also bought a set of "Huainanzi" as a gift to Guo Taiming.

Reporters learned that Anhui and Foxconn have been in more than just preliminary contact, but the matter is still being carried out in secret. Anhui is extremely low-key, and many departments involved have avoided talking about it.

A reporter from 21st Century Business Herald asked the Foreign Investment Division of Anhui Provincial Department of Commerce for details, and was told that they needed to contact the leadership. The Anhui Provincial Economic and Information Commission Office suggested that they contact the Technical Transformation Division. An Anhui official told the reporter that they "knew about it, but they didn't know if it would be finalized."

It is reported that Foxconn, which has been conquering the mainland in the past 20 years but has significantly slowed down its investment pace in the past two years, has shown interest in Anhui thanks to the technology possessed by the local flat panel display and glass industries.

An interviewed Anhui official revealed that if Foxconn lands in Anhui, it will likely invest and set up a factory in Bengbu City, which is part of the Hefei-Wuhu-Bengbu Comprehensive Innovation Experimental Zone. "There is a company in Bengbu called Fangxing Technology, and its glass thinning technology is valued by Foxconn. For this reason, it is possible to reach an agreement with Foxconn," he said.

Public information shows that Anhui Fangxing Technology Co., Ltd. was established in 2000. It focuses on the research and development and production of information display materials and glass deep-processing products. It is a key high-tech enterprise in the National Torch Program and a high-tech enterprise in Anhui Province.

Recently, senior officials of Anhui Province have been intensively investigating the company. On July 15, Zhan Xialai, executive vice governor of Anhui Province, visited the company to inspect the capacitive touch screen project and TFT-LCD glass thinning project. Prior to this, Chen Shulong, vice governor of Anhui Province, also investigated the company and visited the small and medium-sized capacitive touch screen project.

On the one hand, Foxconn showed interest, and on the other hand, Anhui was very enthusiastic. An Anhui official said that once the project was completed, it would bring about a leapfrog development for Anhui's electronic information industry.

Anhui has been building a "home appliance province" for many years, and the industry with the largest contribution is also home appliances. The economic data just released in the first half of the year shows that its industrial added value above designated size ranks first in central China and second in the country. The electronic information industry has replaced the home appliance industry and become the industry with the largest contribution rate among the 40 industries.

As the industrial structure changes, Anhui also hopes to build the electronic information industry into a landmark industry. At the same time, as a tool for local employment and foreign trade, Foxconn's huge investment has also attracted local governments eager to boost the local economy and attract investment.

Currently, Hon Hai Foxconn Technology Group, led by Terry Gou, has set up branches in more than half of the provinces and cities in mainland China. The competition for Foxconn in mainland China, especially in the central and western provinces and cities, is very fierce, and most of the investment is personally solicited by the local "top leaders".

The reporter noticed that as a famous Taiwanese entrepreneur, Guo Taiming's ancestral home is in Jincheng, Shanxi. Shanxi is where Zhang Baoshun, secretary of the Anhui Provincial Party Committee, once worked. The two had met before, as early as 2008, when they had a public meeting.

In 2011, Foxconn landed in Henan, a neighboring province of Anhui. This has led to an exponential growth in local exports and stimulated the urbanization imagination of the southeastern section of Zhengzhou. The Aviation Port Area, which has been struggling for many years, has proposed the goal of building an aviation city.

Data shows that since the introduction of Foxconn, Henan's foreign trade ranking has jumped from third in 2009 after Hubei and Anhui provinces to first among the six central provinces. The volume has also jumped from US$13.438 billion in 2009 before the introduction of Foxconn to US$59.95 billion in 2013, a record high.

Henan Customs data showed that as of the end of 2013, Foxconn Group's contribution to Henan's foreign trade reached 75.8%, with a total of US$30.64 billion, accounting for 58.2% of the province's imports and exports. Foxconn drove 10.3 percentage points of the province's 13.6% growth in foreign trade imports and exports.

For Anhui, the total value of foreign trade in the first half of this year was US$23.87 billion, an increase of 8.9% over the same period last year. However, exports only increased by 2.5%.

An interviewed Anhui official revealed that if Anhui successfully attracts Foxconn to settle down, its scale will be larger than that of Foxconn in Zhengzhou.

However, judging from previous cases of local government investment promotion, Henan spent three years negotiating to attract Foxconn, and Chengdu spent five years negotiating. It is still unknown when Foxconn will be able to land in Anhui.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.