Written by: Guo Tainyue Photographed by: Xu Jiechen

Surrounded in a charming, gentle and beautiful scenery incorporating greenbelt, lakes, greenery shade of big trees, a building rose up facing the water. This building, with its two wings stretching out like spirits, looks quite simple while at the same time magnificent and grand. Its soft and streamlined shape is harmoniously integrated into the surroundings which in turn forms another magnificent picture. This is Shanghai Automobile Exhibition Center located in Shanghai International Automobile City (SIAC), Exhibition Park in Anting Town, Jiading district, Shanghai.

This special exhibition center, the first of its kind to match the auto industry in China seems to have all the favorable conditions of time and location, only 40 minutes by car from the downtown area of Shanghai covering a land area of 39890 square meters with a construction area of 61510 square meters. Shanghai Automobile Exhibition Center, co-invested by Shanghai World Expo (Group) Co., Ltd. and Shanghai International Autocity Development Co., Ltd. with a total investment of RMB400 million Yuan, formally started construction in November 2004. It is located in Shanghai International Automibile City (SIAC), which is one of the key construction projects in the“Tenth Five-year Economic and Social Development Plan”and“Eleventh Five-year Economic and Social Development Plan”of the Shanghai Municipal Government. The Autocity, the Microelectronics Industry Base in the eastern part, the Petrochemical Industry Base in the southern part, the Fine Steel Base in the northern part of Shanghai together constitute the four bases of major industries in the“East, South, West and North”of Shanghai. As one important accessory project of Shanghai International Automobile City, Shanghai Auto Exhibition Center is a large sized and special exhibition venue designed and constructed in accordance with the specific characteristics and need of the auto industry. The kickoff of Shanghai Auto Exhibition Center also symbolizes the preliminary formation of an overall multi-functional auto industry base integrating manufacturing, research and development, trade, exhibition, sports and tourism into a whole. Meanwhile, Automobile Exhibition Center is also the largest investment on a single project since the establishment of the World Expo Group. In virtue of the management and operation of Auto Exhibition Center, the World Expo Group can also accumulate actual and practical experiences for holding a successful World Expo in Shanghai in 2010.

On 10th March, Shanghai Automobile Exhibition Center will be unveiled for the first time by welcoming“Imported Auto Expo Shanghai 2006”, the largest exhibition of the year. Top grade luxury cars such as Ferrari, Bentley, Rolls-Royce and individualized sports cars like SAAB and Coupe will show off in the Exhibition. Over 30 world famous imported auto brands will participate in the Exhibition, with a brand coverage rate of 95%. In all there are about 150 original imported cars to be displayed, attracting thousands of car fans to appreciate their charms.

“Putting Shanghai Automobile Exhibition Center into use will formally draw the curtain of the service functions in Shanghai Automobile Exhibition Center”, said Mr. Shi Jianpei, General Manager of Shanghai Automobile Exhibition Center. It not only provides opportunities for various manufacturers and suppliers to cooperate but also gives the consumers an opportunity to know more about the auto products and culture, which will then promote the development of the related industries in the auto world and finally achieve the aim of building Shanghai into the center of China’s auto industry.