Ordos city is located in the southwest of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, governing Dalate Banner, Zhunge’er Banner, Yijinhuoluo Banner, Uxin Banner, Hangjin Banner, E’tuoke Banner, E’tuokeqian Banner, and Dongsheng District where the city’s administrative center is situated, and it consists of 9 Autonomous Region-level economic and technological development zones. It has an area of 86,700 sq. km, with a population of 1.3945 million among which 160,000 people are ethnic minority. It is a prefecture with Mongolian as its major residents and Han nationality as the majority of its residents.
Ordos has a long history, being the birthplace of the renowned “Hetao Culture”. The story that Zhaojun Departed the Frontier as the princess of China to marry the King of Xiongnu (Huns) in the Qin and Han Dynasties has been widespread for hundreds of years. In the 13th century, Genghis Khan, the greatest emperor, was attracted to the beautiful scenes of Ordos during his way to Western Xia Dynasty for expedition, and selected Ordos as the place where his tomb would be.
Ordos city is 400 km from its east to west, and 340 km from its south to north. It is surrounded by the Yellow River in its western, northern and eastern sides, and is nearby the Ancient Great Wall and joined to Loess Tableland in its southern side. It abuts Ningxia, Shaanxi and Shanxi provinces. The geographic, economic and cultural advantages of Hohhot, capital of the Autonomous Region, and Baotou, grassland steel city, as well as the unique advantages of Ordos in resources form a golden triangle for a new-round economic development in the Autonomous Region.
Ordos has tremendous overground and underground resources. The proved reserve of coals reaches 149.6 billion tons, approximately accounting for 1/6 of the overall proved reserve across the country. The proved reserve of natural gas is 750.4 billion m3, among which the reserve of the Sugeli gas field, one of China’s ultra-large gas field, is up to 602.5 billion cubic meters . The reserves of natural alkalis, salts, Glauber’s salts, gypsums, limestone and kaolin are 60 million tons, 10 million tons, 7 billion tons, 3.5 billion tons, 6.5 billion tons and 6.5 billion tons respectively. The annual productions of wools and leathers are 9.7 billion kg and 2.33 million pieces, respectively. Each year, the production of Arbas cashmere, the so-called soft gold, is 700,000 kg, approximately accounting for 1/3 and 1/6 of the overall productions in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and China respectively. In addition, the annual productions of Liangwai liquorice and ephedra herbs are 4,000 tons and 10,000 tons respectively. It also has superior clays and analcites, Hanggin No.2 earth and various types of wild green plants.
Since the opening-up policy, Ordos has leveraged its advantage in resources, taken the opportunity emerged in moving the priority of China’s energy development strategy to the west as well implementing the development of the western and middle areas of China, developed the industries with textile, chemical, coal, power, construction materials, processing of farming and livestock products as well as medicines as their mainstay, formed several key industries which will drive regional economic growth and identified the dominant status of industrial economy in the national economy, with its growth rate of industrial economy and overall efficiency index listed in the front of other autonomous regions for several consecutive years.
Along with the fast economic development of Ordos, its infrastructure and investment environment witnessed significant changes. High-grade highways have connected all the banners, and express highways between Hohhot and Baotou has been put into practice; the entire city has been covered under the telecommunication networks of China Mobile, Mobile GSM and China Unicom CDMA; the urbanization of its town construction has reached a preliminary scope, and great improvement has been made in science and technology, education and hygiene; the investment environment is attractive, including among others, low power cost, economical land use fee, cheap labor cost, convenient transportation, preferential taxation, the target places of investment equipped with water supply, roads, power supply and telecommunication network and being leveled off; the comprehensive service functions of towns continue to improve; the ecological environment is much better; the social security and legal system environment are sound.
Ordos has rich tourism resources, such as Genghis Khan Tomb, Sounding SandBay, Century Park of Precious Birds, the oasis in the desert Engebei, which has formed unique tour resources with huge potentials for development.
China’s Western Development Program provides new opportunities for Ordos to reinforce its cooperation with domestic and overseas partners in economy and technology. We sincerely welcome all domestic and overseas people of insight who are interested in the development of Ordos to jointly develop and construct the city!