Private enterprises support half of Shandong's economy

On August 5th, 80 enterprises, 50 collectives, and 99 individuals were selected for the "Outstanding Contribution Award for High Quality Development of Private Economy in Shandong Province" list released by the Shandong Provincial Development and Reform Commission and the Shandong Provincial Department of Industry and Information Technology. Niu Yugang, Vice President of Shandong Equipment Manufacturing Association and Chairman of Elite Energy Equipment Co., Ltd., was awarded the honorary title of "Outstanding Contribution Award Individual". For a long time, private enterprises and entrepreneurs have been exploring and forging ahead, adhering to their main business and strengthening their industries. They have played an important role in stabilizing growth, promoting innovation, increasing employment, and improving people's livelihoods, becoming an irreplaceable force in the development of the province and supporting half of Shandong's economy.

In the early summer of 2025, among the 1006 major projects that started construction in the province, private enterprises achieved a "double over half" in both project quantity and investment amount, once again confirming the key position of private enterprises as the "ballast stone" of Shandong's economy. Looking at the land of Qilu, over 14 million private market entities, accounting for 98.9% of the total, form the solid foundation of Shandong's economy. From the rise of modern logistics legend in Yimeng old area to the breakthrough of intelligent manufacturing led by Jiaodong Peninsula, 4.4 million small and medium-sized private enterprises are jointly supporting half of Shandong's economy.

The weight of this' half of the country 'is reflected in a series of heavy numbers: in 2024, the contribution value of Shandong's private economy exceeded 5.1 trillion yuan for the first time in history, accounting for 51.7% of the province's GDP. They contribute 70% of the province's tax revenue, support 80% of employment opportunities, and create a magnificent scale of "1 out of every 13 Chinese private enterprises is a Shandong enterprise". The private economy has long surpassed the scope of "beneficial supplements" and become a driving force supporting the high-quality development of Shandong.

The innovative genes deeply rooted in the bloodline of private enterprises in Shandong support this scale. As a national champion enterprise in wind power flange and a manufacturer of the "Number One Ring in the World"Enaiter Li Yiyi and Li Dianzhong, academicians of the CAS Member, have signed the contract, forming a powerful double academician scientific research booster engine. This year, the enterprise invested 1.1 billion yuan to build a super large equipment core parts business unit, and will build the world's largest 22000 ton free forging press and the world's largest ring rolling machine with a rolling diameter of 22 meters; On this 54 square kilometer land in Qingyang Town, Zouping, two "world champions" have emergedKaitai GroupAs the industry benchmark leading the development of global intelligent shot blasting equipment, metal abrasives are distributed throughout the global market. This story is not unique in Shandong. In the field of equipment manufacturing in our province, more enterprises are striving to write the glory of the private economy - the largest marine motor manufacturing enterprise in ChinaTexas Hengli ElectricDeeply cultivating the blue ocean and striving for strength in the sea, we have won the first CCS type approval certificate for 3MW class marine three-phase permanent magnet shaft generator in China, becoming the strong heart of domestic ships;Jining Tide Precision MachineryThe total investment for the digital production project of 1200 high-end precision CNC machine tools is 300 million yuan, and the products have reached the international advanced level;Tai'an YuluokaAs a benchmark enterprise in the city's digital transformation, we have deeply integrated cutting-edge technology with our own industry and embarked on a unique path of digital and intelligent development;Jinweike LaserAs one of the earliest laser companies in Jinan, our products have been exported to over 180 countries and regions;Hengyuan TechnologyFocusing on core technologies such as the Internet of Things, industrial digitalization, artificial intelligence, etc., to provide equipment manufacturing enterprises with overall solutions for intelligent manufacturing, build industrial scenario AI applications, and form a complete technical closed-loop from data collection, edge computing to intelligent decision-making.

Among the more than 20000 high-tech enterprises in the province, private enterprises account for 90%; Among the 1163 national level specialized and innovative "little giant" enterprises, private enterprises account for over 95%; 235 national level manufacturing industry champions, with private enterprises accounting for 71%, are driving Shandong's acceleration from traditional "manufacturing and processing" to "intelligent manufacturing leadership" driven by innovation.

The bursting of the vitality of private enterprises is inseparable from the continuous nourishment of the fertile soil for reform. Shandong takes the implementation of the Private Economy Promotion Law as an opportunity to improve and implement the "two unshakable" and "two healthy" systems, mechanisms and policy measures, simplify the approval process, and optimize the business environment; break various barriers and adhere to "non-prohibition" "Entry" allows all kinds of enterprises to show their strengths; through policy guidance and financing support, help enterprises break through technical bottlenecks. In 2025, the business environment ranked 6th in the country, private investment in Shandong grew by 7.6 in 2024, leading the country in growth.

Compared with advanced provinces such as Jiangsu and Zhejiang, there is still a gap in the number of enterprises per thousand people in Shandong, and the relatively high proportion of traditional industries has also brought about the structural problem of "difficult employment and difficult employment. Shandong's implementation of the "Ten Thousand Digital Commissioners into Enterprises" campaign will cultivate 10000 digital commissioners, serve more than 1 million small and medium-sized enterprises, and directly promote the digital transformation of more than 100000 small and medium-sized enterprises. Shandong private enterprises have already stepped forward to explore the "second growth curve.

When the craftsman spirit of "sharpening a sword in ten years" meets the institutional innovation of "releasing water to raise fish", it will burst out amazing energy. We have reason to believe that Shandong's private economy, which has a complete pedigree of 41 industrial categories, is writing a new chapter of high-quality development on the land of Qilu with "half of the country" as the fulcrum, injecting inexhaustible impetus into the sustained prosperity of the regional economy. (The data and information in this article are from public reports)

Commentator Guo Guangli from this website