(Yicai Global) Feb. 17 -- Shenzhen in southern Guangdong province is now home to more than 1,300 drone makers, whose output reached CNY75 billion (USD10.9 billion) last year.

Their output represented almost 70 percent of the country’s total for unmanned aerial vehicles, said Yang Jincai, executive chairman of the Drone World Congress and head of Shenzhen’s UAV industry association, during a press briefing yesterday.  

Shenzhen now has a complete drone industry chain and has also established excellent low-altitude airspace conditions, Yang noted, adding that Shenzhen-based DJI is a global leader in the consumer drone market, while SF Holding, another Shenzhen firm, is a key provider of drones for logistics and delivery.  

Since the first-ever proposal for developing the low-altitude economy in a document issued in 2021 by the State Council, China’s cabinet, drones and the low-altitude economy have become important drivers of growth, said Yang.

Drones are now widely used in many sectors such as emergency rescue, logistics and transportation, electricity-related inspections, geology and meteorology as well as urban planning and management. 

By the end of 2022, China had 13,000 UAV and drone-related companies, whose annual output totaled about CNY107 billion (USD15.5 billion), with the number of registered drones totaling 832,000, an increase of 61 percent from 2020. 

Shenzhen’s UAV industry association predicted that by 2024 the domestic drone market will be worth CNY160 billion (USD23.3 billion). 

The Seventh Drone World Congress, which is also the 8th Shenzhen International UAV Expo, will be held from June 2 to 4 in Shenzhen, Yang added.

Editor: Tom Litting