Mianyang Economic and Technological Development Zone was founded in August 2000 and merged with the Mianyang Scientific City and Modern Agriculture Demonstration Zone in 2012. It was upgraded to a national-level economic and development zone in October 2012.
Located at the southern part of the city, the zone, covering an area of 70 kilometers, is a core part of Mianyang's initiative to boost the development pattern of "one core, three districts".
The zone focuses on four pillar industries: electronic information, new materials and circular economy, auto parts and food and beverage. It is advancing its new-generation of information technology and high-end equipment manufacturing. The zone aims to integrate the industries with the city’s development and become a demonstration area for advanced manufacturing in western China.
The zone has a good investment environment with a total of 22 high-tech enterprises including Sichuan Changhong Electronics Group Corp and Lier Chemical Co Ltd. It is home to 18 national-level research institutes such as the China Academy of Engineering Physics and 24 innovative scientific platforms including four national-level labs and eight provincial-level research centers.
In 2017, the zone achieved a GDP of 23.8 billion yuan ($3.54 billion), up 12.7 percent year-on-year. Its gross industrial output value recorded 76.53 billion yuan, up 16.2 percent year-on-year. Its fiscal revenue was 2.55 billion yuan, an annual increase of 20.4 percent. The tax revenue reached 1.86 billion yuan, up 23 percent year-on-year. In the first half of 2018, the growth rate of the zone's GDP hit 9.7 percent.