Two newly built container cargo ships in Qingdao. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Feng says the favorable policies in the New Area will allow the institute to allocate more resources for creating more advanced propulsion systems, adding that the company has delivered the first domestically developed electric propulsion system for ships along Qingdao's coast, and is building a facility to research, produce and experiment with advanced high-power engines.

Feng's optimism was shared by Liu Jisheng, deputy general manager of Qingdao Luhaifeng Food Group, the city's largest fishing operation.

"The central government has become more attentive to the maritime industries and the ocean economy, significantly injecting momentum into our business expansion," he says, adding that the group is planning to build an ultra-low-temperature storage facility with a capacity of 100,000 metric tons.

It also plans to work with local travel agencies to promote fishing and diving tours, and has started an ambitious project to form a chain of fishing-related enterprises in the Indian Ocean.

Liu Cigui, head of the State Oceanic Administration, says the new zone will strengthen innovation and the role of businesses in China's new maritime strategy.

"The marine industries are an important pillar in the development of a maritime power," he told a forum in Beijing in May. "By setting up zones focused on the marine economy and raising specific funds, we will help businesses gain a bigger say in the nation's endeavors to upgrade maritime technology."

Last week, he told reporters that China would go further and deeper into the ocean to expand the country's maritime interests.

The importance of the move is indicated by its inclusion in one of the government's most important documents: the report to the 18th CPC National Congress, held in November 2012, which will guide the nation's direction in the coming years.

The report stipulated: "We should improve our capacity to exploit marine resources, develop the marine economy, protect the ocean environment, resolutely safeguard China's maritime rights and interests, and build China into a maritime power."

The premier

In a speech at a maritime forum in Athens on June 20, Premier Li Keqiang said the ocean has played an indispensable role in the history of Chinese civilization and helped forge connections with other nations.