The Dream Factory of China

Construction on the Phase II project of the Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Youth Innovation and Entrepreneur Hub (E-hub) has entered the final stage, which is expected to complete as scheduled in June.

The project, now under decoration, covers an area of 9,688.41 square meters to the northwest of the first phase of the E-hub in the Qianwan area and will offer a total floor space of 20,000 square meters upon completion. It will house an entrepreneurship accelerator and an entrepreneurship incubator in two buildings.

With a total investment of 200 million yuan (US$28.4 million) by Qianhai Investment Holding, the design of the second phase project has been in line with the first phase, said Yang Dong, head of the engineering management department of the investor.

Yang said Barrie Ho Architecture Interiors Ltd. of Hong Kong has been involved in the project, from designing to choosing the construction materials and equipment, to ensure its high quality. The project contractor, the Second Construction Engineering Co. Ltd. of China Construction Second Engineering Bureau, started the construction in February last year.

The E-hub has been a major innovation and entrepreneurship platform for the youths from Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao. It provides one-stop services such as incubation and business operations for high-tech startups. Favorable policies on concessionary office rent and financial support have been adopted to serve the incubated startups. Other services such as entrepreneurship training, exchanges programs and connecting startups with venture capital have also been offered at the E-hub.

After the second phase project is put into use, the E-hub will have space to serve and incubate more startups from Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao while offering more diversified services.

So far, 432 startups, including 224 international entrepreneurial teams, have been incubated at the E-hub. They have received a total of 1.5 billion yuan in investment.