As self-driving vehicles edge closer to widespread rollout in China, the country is taking its autonomous mobility technology onto the high seas.

China has built its first research and development test base for autonomous ships in the southern coastal city of Zhuhai next to Macao, state-owned newspaper Economic Daily reported Monday.

Called the Xiangshan Ocean Science and Technology Port, the 52,000-square-meter base will design, develop and test smart marine technology and unmanned seafaring systems. Backed by local unicorn Zhuhai Yun Zhou Intelligent Technology, it is expected to go into operation at the end of the year, the report said.

Zhang Jinghua, an officer at the Zhuhai National High-Tech Industrial Development District where the base is located, said it will help the Chinese government to promote the technology and innovation required to develop the marine economy in the Greater Bay Area, a densely populated group of southern port cities that include Guangzhou, Macao, and Hong Kong.

The project marks China’s latest step in strengthening its capacity to built autonomously operated vessels that can navigate the seas without human personnel. In 2017, the country commenced operations at what it then claimed was the world’s largest automated cargo terminal in Shanghai, state-owned broadcaster CCTV reported.

Contact reporter Tang Ziyi (ziyitang@caixin.com)

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