One of the fast-growing areas in Qingdao, Shandong province, Shinan district has entered a new phase in the development of its advanced sectors - promoting innovation and financial services.

Officials said statistics showed that such activities in the district as finance, tourism, trade services and cultural creativity contributed around 10 percent annually to Qingdao's total economy.

"Shinan district has achieved high-quality development. It has robust impetus to replace traditional growth drivers with new ones," said Hua Yusong, Party chief of the district.

"The district has huge potential to achieve breakthroughs and new developments," he said.

In 2018, the district government issued a guideline to boost the marine economy through attracting more marine industry programs and promoting the development of industries such as marine science and technology, shipping logistics and coastal tourism.

The district also built platforms last year, such as an international science and technology commercialization center and an innovation services cooperative organization, as part of its efforts to support local high-tech companies.

In 2018, the number of hightech companies in the district topped 200, ranging from digital communications and virtual reality to environmental protection.

Qingdao Clear Environmental, an innovation-driven environmental protection company, was founded in the district in 2007.

The company has developed technology to transform traditional solid coal into coal slurry, reducing the environmental impact in the process of coal's preparation, storage, transportation, combustion and emissions.

"At present, the technology has ranked top in the world," said Wang Hongmin, vice-president of the company.

So far, boilers equipped with the technology have been put into operation in Shandong province, and the eco-friendly technology has been commercialized in provinces including Hebei, Shanxi and Jiangsu, Wang said.

As Qingdao's core area for the city's financial industry, Shinan has gained momentum for further improvement in the sector.

Last year, the district cooperated with the Shanghai Stock Exchange and the finance office of Qingdao city to set up the Qingdao Capital Market Service Base.

To date, it has attracted a total of 15 service institutions, including consultancies KPMG and PwC. It has launched over 10 activities, providing services for more than 700 companies.