Sonderborg, a brilliant pearl along the coast of the Baltic Sea

It is an important hub connecting the Atlantic Ocean and the Baltic Sea, and a well-known green and low-carbon city in Denmark; it is the city where globally renowned enterprise Danfoss Group is headquartered; and it is Haiyan’s first international sister city.

Sonderborg is a coastal city in the Region of Southern Denmark on the Jutland Peninsula, bordering Germany across the sea. With an area of 500 square kilometers and a population of 77,000, it was historically part of “Duchy of Schleswig”. Annexed by Prussia in 1864, it was reunited with Denmark in 1920.

Boasting a long history, it thrives as an industrial hub now with over 300 manufacturing companies. In recent years, it has taken a “zero carbon path” , aiming to become a zero-carbon city by 2029. Supported by Danfoss, the city has evolved into a European model “Clean Energy Valley”, specializing in energy efficiency, regional heating and renewable energy technologies, and a model city for Europe to realize zero emissions of carbon dioxide.

Cooperation between Sonderborg and Haiyan

In 2005, Zhejiang Haili Electronics joined Danfoss Group, and Haiyan has gradually evolved into Danfoss’s southern manufacturing base in China. With the help of Danfoss, Haiyan and Sonderborg have forged a robust partnership, and cooperated in various fields. As one of China’s 12 cities as China-EU urbanization partners, Haiyan signed the “Letter of Intent on China-EU Urbanization Projects of Cooperative Cities” on 21 December, 2013 in the presence of Li Keqiang, then premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, and Jose Manuel Durao Barroso, then president of the Commission of EU, initiating the strategic cooperation between Haiyan and Sonderborg.

On October 13, 2016, National Development and Reform Commission of the P.R.C. and the Commission of EU jointly conferred the “Model Zone for the Development of China-Eu Urbanization Partnership” on Haiyan County and Songdeborg City.

From January 25 to 28, 2015, deputy mayor of Sonderborg made a friendly visit to Haiyan with his delegation and discussed with Haiyan the cooperation on education, green and low-carbon industries, etc.

On April 20, 2017, Lauritzen, then mayor of Sonderborg, visited Haiyan, and two sides signed a sister city relationship agreement, meaning that Haiyan and Sonderborg have been sister cities from then on, and the cooperation between the two made new progress. On the 21 April, 2017, the two held an exhibition & donation ceremony for the famous Danish painter Anita’s oil paintings at Museum of Haiyan.

In November 2018, Chen Lingfang, then secretary of the CPC Haiyan County Committee, visited Songderborg, and the two parties conducted in-depth discussions on cultural, educational and industrial cooperation. During her visit, Chen was invited to attend the second “China-Denmark Local Government Cooperation Forum” and delivered a keynote speech “Cooperation on Green Solutions”.

Over the past decade, Haiyan and Sonderborg have achieved fruitful exchanges in economic, cultural, educational and environmental sectors. With about 15.8 hectares of land and over 1,200 employees, seven Danfoss Group-invested projects now operate in Haiyan. They have generated 2.745 billion yuan in output value and 280 million yuan in total profits. Haiyan now serves as Danfoss’s second-largest investment destination in China. In 2015, Haiyan Polytechnic School and University College South Denmark signed an agreement to become sister institutions. The two parties annually send faculty and students for academic visits, and launched the first vocational program “International Class” in 2019.