Dezhou Economic and Technological Development Zone received construction approval in 1992 and commenced construction in March 1998, and was upgraded to a state-level development zone in March 2012. With an area of 320 km² including 60 km² of built-up area and a resident population of about 300,000, it has been authorized to have jurisdiction over three towns including Zhaohu Town, Yuanqiao Town and Taitousi Town and two sub-districts including Songguantun and Changhe at present. With twenty years of construction and development, the Zone has blossomed into a political, economic and cultural center of Dezhou City. Since establishment, it has won many honorable titles such as “National Solar Photovoltaic Power Generation and Centralized Application Demonstration Area”, “National Solar Photothermal Comprehensive Utilization Industry Demonstration Base”, “National Torch Program New Energy Industrial Base”, “China New Energy and Bio-industry Talent Introduction Pilot Area”, “Innovation Base for Trade Rejuvenation through Science and Technology”, and “National Intellectual Property Industrialization Pilot Base”; with the Zone as the main carrier, Dezhou City has earned such titles as the Solar City and the Capital of Pressure Filters in China.

In 2017, the Zone’s GDP registered RMB 25.65 billion, a year-on-year increase of 8.5%, a figure topping the city; the Zone’s general public budget revenue reached RMB 2.204 billion, a year-on-year increase of 12.6%; the Zone’s taxation accounted for about 1/6 of the city’s total, representing a rise in the share of the Zone’s taxation in overall taxation to 88.7%, ranking first in the city; the Zone’s total volume of foreign trade recorded RMB 5.13 billion, a year-on-year increase of 40.8% with its total volume of foreign trade, export volume and import volume all accounting for about 1/5 of the city’s total respectively. According to 2017 evaluation and assessment ranking for the comprehensive development level of national economic and technological development zones by the Ministry of Commerce, the Zone has leaped 17 places to 122nd spot among 219 state-level economic and technological development zones across the nation and leaped 6 places to 8th spot among 15 state-level economic and technological development zones across the province with the performance of 14 evaluation indicators above average of state-level economic and technological development zones nationwide.

Currently, an industrial system with a relatively complete range of industries and strong overall strength has taken preliminary shape in the area where six leading industries including new energy, grand health, electronic information, advanced equipment manufacturing, agricultural and sideline product processing and modern service act as the main driving force and emerging and traditional industries intersect with each other. Meanwhile, a number of groups and enterprises such as Jingjin Environmental Protection Co., Ltd., Shuanghui Group, Himin Solar Energy Co., Ltd., Yatai Group and Zhongda Air-conditioner Group have seen a constant scale-up and take-off. In 2017, the Zone’s GDP reached RMB 25.65 billion, a year-on-year increase of 8.5%. With an area accounting for only 0.22% of the city’s total, the Zone’s GDP surprisingly accounted for 8.17% of the city’s total and the Zone’s public budget revenue 11.75% of the city’s total. Industry saw a constant scale-up. The core business revenue of industrial enterprises above designated size recorded RMB 101.709 billion, a year-on-year increase of 14.68% and the profits generated hit RMB 5.258 billion, a year-on-year increase of 13.05%. Social investment experienced a continuous expansion. In 2017, the fixed asset investment registered RMB 27.627 billion, a year-on-year increase of 8.7%, including RMB 9.914 billion for technical transformation investment, a year-on-year increase of 7.4%. Social consumption grew increasingly dynamic. The retail sales of social consumer goods recorded RMB 10.403 billion, a year-on-year increase of 11.3%; the public budget revenue reached RMB 2.204 billion, a year-on-year increase of 12.6% and the share of the taxation in the city’s total rose to 88.7%; the total export and import volume registered RMB 5.13 billion, a year-on-year increase of 40.8%, a figure topping the city. As a proportion of regional GDP, the primary industry saw a constant drop, the secondary industry stabilized and showed signs of moderate decline, and the tertiary industry enjoyed a continuous rise. During the 12th Five-Year Plan period, the tertiary industry as a proportion of regional GDP climbed from 33.2% to 37% and stood at 37.9% in 2017, registering signs of stable rise. Obviously, as a major industrial base in the region, the Zone has taken industry as its pillar industry all along and the constant rise in the share of the tertiary industry as a proportion of regional GDP has spoken volume for the rapid growth of the Zone’s service industry.

At present, the Zone possesses 188 enterprises above designated size and has formed six leading industries including new energy, grand health, equipment manufacturing, agricultural product processing, electronic information and modern service.