Qiantang district in Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province, recently provided nearly 20 million yuan ($2.79 million) in cash awards for companies that have made great contributions to social and economic development, local media reported.

About 160 companies benefited from the incentive policy.

In May, Qiantang released 22 policies to help companies overcome challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic.

These policies are focused on reducing taxes on firms, encouraging firms to increase productivity and smoothing the industrial and supply chains of manufacturing firms.

An official with the development and reform bureau of Qiantang said that the incentive policy was designed to further stimulate the productivity of firms.

Electric vehicles are seen at GAC Motor (Hangzhou) Co Ltd in Qiantang district, Hangzhou, capital of East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/Hangzhou Daily]

GAC Motor (Hangzhou) Co Ltd is one of the beneficiaries. It received 1 million yuan in cash awards.

Despite the uncertainties caused by COVID-19 in the first half of this year, GAC Motor (Hangzhou) completed the transformation of its assembly line for electric cars. The firm's growth rate for the first half of this year grew at a rate of more than 50 percent.