Shanghai Daily news

World Expo 2010 Shanghai will set up a 110,000-square-meter area for 16 corporate pavilions, including nine Chinese enterprises, organizers said yesterday.

Representatives from more than 20 stated-owned enterprises, including PetroChina, Sinopec, China Telecom and State Grid, toured the Expo 2010 site. The tour was led by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council.

Zhou Hanmin, deputy director general of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination, described the attendees as the "national team" of the country's economy. Zhou hoped the nine pavilions for Chinese enterprises could find their owners among them.

Huang Shuhe, deputy director of SASAC, said Japanese companies displayed their most sophisticated technologies at the World Expo Aichi in 2005 and established a good image for the country.

"Our domestic enterprises must put up high-quality exhibitions and try to become the highlight of the Expo," said Huang.

Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp Group and General Motors Corp, exclusive auto partner of the Expo, confirmed in July that they would build a joint corporate pavilion.

The SAIC and GM Pavilion will feature their "personal mobility concept" - clean, sustainable, small or micro vehicles. The emphasis is on flexible personal urban transportation in keeping with the Expo theme "Better City, Better Life" and will present cutting-edge technologies and concepts, the companies said.

China Mobile will also build a pavilion as a global partner. Global partners have priority in building corporate pavilions, organizers said.

Shanghai Expo now have six global partners - China Eastern, China Telecom, China Mobile, SAIC and GM, Bank of Communications and Siemens.

According to the rules of International Expositions Bureau, companies are required to showcase their understanding of the World Expo themes in the corporate pavilions, rather than displaying their products or services.

Among the 16 corporate pavilions, 14 will be newly built and two will be renovated from old factories. All the new constructions are temporary and will be demolished within six months of Expo 2010 ending.