The Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City is the second flagship Government-to-Government project between Singapore and China. The project was mooted by then-Singapore Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong and former Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in April 2007, against the backdrop of rapid urbanisation and increasing global attention on the importance of sustainable development. On 18 November 2007, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Mr Wen Jiabao signed a Framework Agreement for Singapore and China to jointly develop the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City.

Vision

The Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City’s vision is to be a thriving city which is socially harmonious, environmentally-friendly and resource-efficient – a model for sustainable development. This vision is underpinned by the concepts of Three Harmonies and Three Abilities.

Three Harmonies refer to

  • People living in harmony with other people, i.e. social harmony;
  • People living in harmony with economic activities, i.e. economic vibrancy; and
  • People living in harmony with the environment, i.e. environmental sustainability.

Three Abilities refer to the Eco-city being

  • Practicable: the technologies adopted in the Eco-City must be affordable and commercially viable;
  • Replicable: the principles and models of the Eco-City could be applied to other cities in China and in other countries; and
  • Scalable: the principles and models could be adapted for another project or development of a different scale.

Location

Tianjin is part of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei (Jing-Jin-Ji) region. The coordinated development of the Jing-Jin-Ji region is a key national strategy in China. Within Tianjin, the Eco-City is located in the Tianjin Binhai New Area, and around 40km from Tianjin City.

TEC Map

The Chinese government had two criteria when choosing the site – land is non-arable, and facing water shortage. Four possible sites for the project were identified – Baotou (Inner Mongolia), Tangshan (Hebei Province), Tianjin Municipality, Urumqi (Xinjiang), The current site in Tianjin Municipality was eventually chosen as it was on non-arable land facing water shortage, which would be a convincing demonstration that sustainable urbanisation could be achieved despite difficult environmental challenges.

A Joint Steering Council co-chaired at the Deputy Prime Minister-Vice Premier level charts the strategic directions of the project.

Officials from various Singapore agencies join hands with Tianjin counterparts to look into different aspects of the Eco-City's development, such as urban planning, greenery, water management and investment promotion. Agencies involved include Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). National Parks Board (NParks), Public Utility Board (PUB, the national water agency) and Enterprise Singapore (ESG).

At the private sector-level, the Sino-Singapore Tianjin Eco-City investment and Development., Ltd. is formed by a Singapore Consortium and a Chinese Consortium, each with a 50% stake in the joint venture company. It is the master developer for the project. The company also takes on investment promotion of the Eco-City. The undertaking of the project by the private sector helps to ensure its commercial viability and enhance its scope for replication. The Keppel Group leads the Singapore Consortium, while the Chinese Consortium is led by Tianjin TEDA Investment Holding Co., Ltd.