China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation (CRRC) Qingdao Sifang Co Ltd held a ground-breaking ceremony of its manufacturing facility on the South Side of Chicago, the United States on Thursday.

At the ceremony, Sun Yongcai, vice-president of CRRC said, CRRC, as the world's largest rail transit manufacturer, sells products to over 20 countries and regions. CRRC products have received broad recognition. Sun added, the 100 million U.S. dollars facility will strive to create the highest value for Chicago and promote the social and economic development of Chicago.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel said, CRRC's investment will power the economy of the South Side of Chicago and create good-paying jobs for hundreds of workers. He hopes that it's just the start of the mutually beneficial partnership between both sides.

This project embodies a new characteristic of China's investment in the US, which is to create more jobs and taxes for the local area, said Hong Lei, Chinese Consul General in Chicago.

According to Hong, in the past 15 years, Chinese enterprises have invested accumulatively 13 billion U.S. dollars in the Midwest United States, creating nearly 30,000 jobs.

The facility covering 183,333 sqm is expected to be complete in May of 2018. It will employ 169 factory workers at least.

Email: gaohan@nbd.com.cn