New thrust

The new thrust of China's blue economy is a combination of traditional, new and emerging industries. Power generation from the sea, for instance, grew 25 percent in 2011, while ocean biopharmaceuticals rose 15.7 percent.

"Unlike other sectors, marine industries are more reliant on technological development," says Guan Huashi, a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and a professor in the Ocean University of China in Qingdao, Shandong province.

Lin Xiufen, general manager of Xiamen Blue Bay Science & Technology, a marine biomedicine maker, says that it was a proud moment for her when the Glucosamine capsules made by her company achieved purity levels in excess of 90 percent, while the world average was about 80 percent.

She says that such a feat was possible due to the close cooperation the company had with researchers from the Third Institute of Oceanography in Xiamen. "In Glucosamine technology, China is clearly the world leader, even though it lags developed countries in overall marine biology," she says.

Regional governments in China, especially those on the coastline, are now taking serious steps to shore up the marine economy.

But for the moment, all eyes are on coastal Qingdao. The city is setting up the Blue Silicon Valley on a vast stretch of land from Laoshan district to Jimo county in the north of the city to facilitate oceanographic research and other high-technology development as well as commercial applications for the marine sector.

Nearly 33 major projects involving a combined projected investment of about 22.2 billion yuan is either under construction or in the pipeline in the core areas of the Blue Silicon Valley at Aoshanwei town in Jimo.

"Like the Silicon Valley in the US, we want to be a paradise for entrepreneurs and innovators," says Zhang Feng, deputy head of the administration committee of the Blue Silicon Valley. "We have set up business incubators and also plan to rope in technology brokers to enhance the commercialization of research findings."

The Qingdao campus of Shandong University began work in July. Phase I of the Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology was completed last year, and is now looking to attract renowned oceanographers from around the globe.

The area's National Deep-Sea Base made history last year when its Jiaolong deep-sea submersible broke the 7,000-meter-mark on July 16.

The national deep-sea base program is the fifth of its kind in the world after ones in the US, Russia, France and Japan.

Other programs that will be built in the area include the National Inspection Center for Marine Equipment, Qingdao Institute of Marine Geology and the R&D Center of Beidou Navigation.