At a recent investment promotion event in north China's Tianjin Municipality, Turkish businessman Mehmet Sahin was seen exchanging business cards with entrepreneurs from Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member countries.

This undated file photo shows a view of the China-Egypt TEDA Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone in Ain Sokhna district of Suez province, Egypt. (TEDA Investment Holding Co., Ltd./Handout via Xinhua)

"I really appreciate attending this event," said Sahin, vice president of global purchasing and logistics at Hattat Holding A.S., a Turkish company engaged in energy, automotive, agricultural and real estate development. He noted his assurance that the event would help him meet with potential Chinese and Russian investors and cooperation partners.

The China-SCO Sustainable Development Industrial Investment Promotion Event, which concluded on Friday, saw Sahin's company engage in negotiations with the China Coal Technology & Engineering Group to explore investment opportunities in potential coal-cleaning projects.

Broader cooperation with Chinese enterprises is also underway in sectors such as engine assembly, production and sales, as well as wind power generation, according to Sahin.

"This event has been a good start, and the upcoming SCO summit will further promote mutual understanding and future planning among all participating countries," he said.

China will host an SCO summit in Tianjin this autumn. Among the summit's advance events, the promotional event Sahin attended has brought fresh momentum to economic and trade cooperation between China and SCO member states, observer states and dialogue partners.

Türkiye, Sri Lanka, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia were among the participating SCO dialogue partners.

During the event, the China-Egypt TEDA Suez Economic and Trade Cooperation Zone disclosed significant progress.

The Tianjin TEDA Electric Power Company announced a partnership with SCZone Utilities S.A.E., and revealed that the China-Africa TEDA Investment Co., Ltd., which developed the cooperation zone, will build a 200-megawatt substation.

This critical infrastructure project aims to resolve power supply constraints for major projects in the cooperation zone, lower business costs for enterprises while drawing in premium investors, and accelerate industrial clustering in the zone, according to Wang Weihua, general manager of the Tianjin TEDA Electric Power Company.

Established in 2008, the zone has become Egypt's most competitive industrial hub, serving as a benchmark of China-Egypt cooperation.

"Tianjin TEDA is one of our best partners," said Ahmed Salaheldin Abdelfattah Elhomosani, general manager of SCZone Utilities S.A.E., noting that the cooperation zone has attracted a significant amount of investment.

Trade between China and SCO member states, observer states and dialogue partners came in at a record high of 890 billion U.S. dollars in 2024, accounting for approximately 14.4 percent of China's total foreign trade that year, according to official statistics.