Representatives from Doppelmayr Group and Jilin Wanfeng Industry Co Ltd sign a cooperation agreement on Dec 1. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

China's first professional ski resort, located in Dongchang district in Tonghua city in Northeast China's Jilin province, will reopen thanks to an upgrading agreement signed on Dec 1 between Austria's Doppelmayr Group and Jilin Wanfeng Industry Co Ltd. The resort has previously hosted 18 of China's national competitions.

Under the agreement, Doppelmayr Group will help the Tonghua-based winter sports resort to upgrade its ski track, ropeway equipment and supporting infrastructures.

As part of Wanfeng's "ice and snow new city projects", after upgrading, the resort will have 33 high-level, medium-level and primary-level snow tracks with a total length of about 31 kilometers.

It will be equipped with four high-speed ropeways and six magic carpets, with a maximum carrying capacity of 11,490 people per hour. It will go into full operation by mid-December next year and have conditions suitable for holding intercontinental skiing events and world-cup individual events.

Representatives from Doppelmayr Group and Jilin Wanfeng Industry Co Ltd attends the signing ceremony on Dec 1. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

The planning area of the "ice and snow new city project" is 12 square kilometers, which is divided into three construction sections: ice and snow sports, healthcare and vacation, and event service. The first phase of the project includes the construction of Tonghua ski resort, a hot spring area and a commercial town.

The municipal and district governments will also move to construct supporting infrastructures for the projects.

After the facility begins operation, it will provide more professional and high-quality training places for winter sports teams and boost the cultivation of relevant talents.