Shandong province has been working to become a hub for the development of the marine economy by promoting industrial innovation and upgrades and fostering modern marine industry clusters.

In 2024, Shandong achieved a marine-related output of 1.8 trillion yuan ($248.6 billion), ranking second nationwide with a 6.1-percent year-on-year growth and accounting for 18.3 percent of the province's total regional GDP, according to data from the Ministry of Natural Resources.

Additionally, in 2024, the 15 major marine industries in the province achieved an added value of 806.86 billion yuan, ranking first in the country for the fifth year in a row. Among them, seven industries, including marine fisheries, aquaculture processing, marine mining, and marine transportation, ranked first in the country in terms of added value.

Speaking at a press conference on March 12, Zhang Jiandong, director of the Shandong Ocean Bureau, said that behind the achievements of Shandong's marine economy lies the province's firm determination and practical exploration of oceans, as well as its efforts to continuously optimize the marine industry structure and boost development momentum.

Industrial innovation has powered Shandong's significant progress in the transformation and upgrading of traditional marine industries. Looking to key projects as drivers of the marine economy, Shandong is continuously working to strengthen its foundation for the development of the marine economy, with investments totaling 85 billion yuan in 2024.

The level of coordinated development between marine transportation, marine engineering equipment, and other advantageous industries continues to rise.

By concentrating resources to cultivate modern marine industry clusters and leading enterprises, Shandong has managed to increase the total output value of six characteristic marine industrial clusters, including offshore wind power equipment manufacturing in Dongying and modern marine bioscience in Qingdao, to more than 80 billion yuan.

In 2025, Shandong will strengthen efforts to promote the high-quality development of the marine economy, striving to become a modern marine economy hub.