The "156 Key Projects" (Russian: 156 Ключевых Промышленных Проектов КНР ), referred to as the 156 Projects (Russian: 156 Проектов), were a series of industrial infrastructure projects constructed in China with assistance and technological transfer from the Soviet Union in the 1950s. It laid the material and technological foundation for China's initial industrialisation. China built an industrial economic system with these projects as the core and more than 900 large and medium-sized projects as the supporting facilities.

In the 1950s, Chen Yun, who was then the director of the Central Finance and Economics Committee and the director of the State Capital Construction Committee , commented:  "The 156 items in the first five-year plan were indeed aid, reflecting the friendship of the Soviet working class and the Soviet people towards us." However, the Soviet developmental assistance ended with the advent of the Sino-Soviet split in 1960.^[1]

In January 1949, Soviet Politburo member Mikoyan went to Xibaipo, Hebei Province to hold talks with Chinese Communist Party leaders. On February 6, Mao Zedong asked Mikoyan for a loan of US$300 million, 300 vehicles, and various necessary materials, machinery, petroleum products, and silver for coinage, hoping that these could be provided in installments over three years starting from 1949.

On June 21, 1949, a delegation of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China consisting of Liu Shaoqi , Gao Gang and Wang Jiaxiang visited the Soviet Union. During the preliminary talks from late June to early July, China hoped to obtain a loan of US$300 million from the Soviet Union. Since China was establishing an institution for unified economic management and the liberated areas were expanding, it was lacking experts and information and was unable to submit the entire order list to the Soviet Union at the moment. It was hoped that major Soviet experts would come to China to jointly agree with China on all or a major part of the order list. On August 14, Liu Shaoqi, together with Kovalyov, the head of the Soviet experts visiting China, and 220 Soviet experts, left Moscow for their country. The Chinese and Soviet experts jointly studied specific projects that the Soviet Union would help China build.

On the basis of the consultations during Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai's visits to the Soviet Union, China and the Soviet Union formally signed the "Agreement between the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on Loans to the People's Republic of China" on February 14, 1950. The Soviet Union loaned China US$300 million at a preferential interest rate of 1% per year to repay the machinery, equipment and materials delivered by the Soviet Union to restore and develop the economy of the People's Republic of China. The government of the People's Republic of China repaid the loan and interest in ten years with raw materials, tea, cash, and US dollars. After that, Li Fuchun , Wang Jiaxiang , Ye Jizhuang , Liu Yalou , Saifuding Aizezi and Wu Xiuquan formed a new Chinese government delegation, stayed in the Soviet Union to continue negotiations and signed some individual economic and trade agreements . Generally, the Soviet Union would first send a design team to China, make a design based on China's conditions, and then finalize the project, combining the plan of building a new factory with the plan of modifying the original factory, and combining the supply of current needs with the supply of future needs. From 1950 to early 1952, the Soviet Union helped design a total of 42 projects.

• The first group of 16 Soviet experts and designers was hired by Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai in 1950 when they were in the Soviet Union;
• The second group of three Soviet expert design teams were hired after the Korean War to establish the North Manchuria base;
• The third group of Soviet expert design team was hired in 1951.

Among the 42 projects, the geographical distribution is:

• There are 30 in Northeast China, 20 of which are related to electricity, steel, coal, and aluminium production, and the other 10 are related to machinery, chemicals, papermaking, etc.
• There are 6 power stations in Taiyuan , Chongqing , Xi'an , Zhengzhou , and a fertiliser and dye plant in Taiyuan.
• 5 in Xinjiang, power plants and hospitals
• 1 in Inner Mongolia.

The total investment for 35 projects in the interior and northeast China alone is estimated at 3.4 billion yuan, of which foreign orders account for 30%. By January 1952, 15 designs had been preliminary designed and approved.

In August 1952, Premier Zhou Enlai and Vice Premier Chen Yun led a Chinese government delegation to the Soviet Union to further discuss economic development assistance with the Soviet government. Before May 1953, 50 enterprises were commissioned to be designed by the Soviet Union in the three years from 1950 to 1952, and China received assistance in the construction and reconstruction of the enterprises with the Soviet Union's consent. Specifically:

1. Anshan Iron and Steel Company
2. Dashiqiao Magnesium Mine Plant
3. Fulaerji Special Steel Plant (Phase I)
4. Benxi Iron and Steel Company
5. Harbin aluminium Processing Plant
6. Fushun aluminium Plant (Phase I)
7. Jilin Ferroalloy Factory
8. Jilin Calcium Carbide Calcium Carbonitride Factory
9. Jilin Electrode Factory
10. Jilin Nitrogen fertiliser Plant
11. Jilin Dye Factory
12. Taiyuan Dye Factory (i.e. Taiyuan Chemical Factory)
13. Jixi Chengzi River Shaft
14. Hegang Dongshan No. 1 Shaft
15. Hegang Xing'an Terrace No. 1 Shaft
16. Fuxin Pingan No. 1 Shaft
17. Fuxin Xinqiu No. 1 vertical shaft
18. Fuxin Haizhou Open-Pit Mine
19. Liaoyuan Central Shaft
20. Datong Emaokou Shaft
21. Datong Tubai Kiln Shaft
22. Taiyuan No.1 Thermal Power Plant (Phase I)
23. Fushun Power Station
24. Fuxin Power Station
25. Dalian Thermal Power Station
26. Fulaerji Thermal Power Plant
27. Jilin Thermal Power Station
28. Xi'an Second Thermal Power Plant (Phase I)
29. Urumqi Power Station
30. Chongqing Power Station
31. Zhengzhou Second Power Station
32. Fengman Hydropower Station
33. Shenyang No.1 Machine Tool Factory
34. Harbin Measuring Tool Factory
35. Shenyang Pneumatic Tools Factory
36. Harbin Boiler Factory
37. First Automobile Works
38. Harbin Electric Meter Instrument Factory
39. Shenyang Cable Factory
40. Jiamusi Integrated Paper Mill
41. Jiamusi Integrated Paper Mill Copper Mesh Factory
42. Electron Tube Factory(774)
43. Aircraft Repair Shop(122)
44. Aircraft Engine Repair Shop (120)
45. Shenyang Aircraft Repair Factory
46. Shenyang Aviation Engine Repair Factory
47. Nanchang Aircraft Repair Factory
48. Zhuzhou Aviation Engine Repair Factory
49. Yakeshi Paper Factory
50. No. 8 Shaft of Yingchengzi Silver Mine

On May 15, 1953, Li Fuchun and Mikoyan signed the "Agreement on Assistance of the Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics to the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China in Developing China's National Economy" on behalf of the two governments respectively, stipulating that the Soviet Union would use technical equipment to assist China in the construction and reconstruction of 91 enterprises from 1953 to 1959. Specifically:

1. Baotou United Iron and Steel Plant
2. Daye Iron and Steel Combined Plant
3. Harbin aluminium Alloy Processing Plant (Phase II)
4. Fushun aluminium Plant (Phase II)
5. Fushun Magnesium Plant
6. Jiangxi Tungsten Mine Factory
7. Xi'an Cemented Carbide Factory
8. Yunnan Gejiu Tin Joint Factory (reconstruction and expansion)
9. Liaoxi Yangjiazhangzi Molybdenum Mine (Expansion)
10. Rehe Alum Titanium Mine Factory (Restoration and Reconstruction)
11. Lanzhou Nitrogen fertiliser Plant
12. Taiyuan Nitrogen fertiliser Plant
13. Lanzhou Synthetic Rubber Factory
14. Jixi Guangyi No. 1 vertical shaft (later planned to be replaced by Wangshiao)
15. Shuangyashan Jianshan No. 2 vertical shaft (later planned to be replaced by Pingdingshan)
16. Shuangyashan Coal Washing Plant
17. Tonghua Wangou Shaft
18. Hegang Xing'antai No. 2 vertical shaft
19. Hegang Mainland Vertical Shaft (later planned to be replaced by Donglutian)
20. Fushun Coal Combined Plant
21. Huainan Xiejiaji Central Coal Preparation Plant
22. Jiaozuo Zhongma Village Well
23. Fengfeng Beidayu Shaft (formerly known as Tongshun Shaft)
24. Fengfeng Coal Washing Plant
25. Jixi Didao No. 11 vertical shaft (later planned to be replaced by Shanxi Lu'an vertical shaft)
26. Taiyuan No.1 Thermal Power Plant (Phase II)
27. Taiyuan Second Thermal Power Station (separated from the second phase of Taiyuan First Thermal Power Station)
28. Shijiazhuang Thermal Power Station (Phase II)
29. Baotou No.1 Thermal Power Station
30. Xi'an Second Thermal Power Plant (Phase II)
31. Fulaerji Thermal Power Station (Phase II) (later renamed Xi'an Third Thermal Power Station)
32. Lanzhou Thermal Power Station
33. Gejiu Power Station (Phase I)
34. Daye Thermal Power Station
35. Micro hydrothermal power station
36. Lanzhou Refinery
37. Shenyang Second Machine Tool Factory
38. Wuhan Heavy Tool Machine Factory
39. Fulaerji Heavy Machinery Factory
40. Luoyang Mining Machinery Factory
41. Lanzhou Petroleum Machinery Factory (Oil Extraction Equipment)
42. Harbin Steam Turbine Works (Turbine)
43. Second Automobile Manufacturing Plant
44. Luoyang Tractor Manufacturing Plant
45. Luoyang Ball Bearing Factory
46. Harbin Electric Motor Factory Steam Turbine Generator Workshop
47. Harbin Brush Factory
48. Xi'an Switch Mercury Rectifier Factory
49. Xi'an Electric Capacitor Factory
50. Xi'an Insulation Material Factory
51. Xi'an High Voltage Porcelain Factory
52. Shijiazhuang Starch Factory
53. Shijiazhuang Antibiotics Factory
54. Taiyuan Sulfonamide Factory
55. 85mm anti-aircraft gun and 85mm tank gun factory
56. Optical Instrument Factory
57. Steel projectile factory
58. Fuze Manufacturer
59. Copper Shell Manufacturing Plant
60. Charge Plant
61. Charge Plant
62. Detonator Cap Factory
63. Mine Manufacturing Plant
64. Single-base smokeless medicine factory
65. Shuangji Smokeless Pharmaceutical Factory
66. TNT Manufacturing Plant
67. Anti-virus equipment factory
68. Jet engine repair shop
69. jet fighter factory
70. Aircraft Engine Accessories Factory
71. Aircraft accessories factory
72. Aviation electrical equipment factory
73. Jet Fighter Repair Shop
74. Aviation Instruments Manufacturer
75. Trainer aircraft manufacturer
76. Piston engine manufacturer
77. Impact machine repair shop
78. Trainer and fighter aircraft repair shop
79. Jet engine manufacturer
80. Medium tank factory
81. tank engine factory
82. general radio parts factory
83. Advanced Communications Equipment Manufacturing Plant
84. automatic telephone exchange factory
85. Complete radar manufacturer
86. anti-aircraft gun radar factory
87. aircraft radar manufacturer
88. Wuhan Power Station
89. Searchlight Factory
90. Lightning arrester workshop

The industry distribution of these 91 enterprises is as follows:

• The two steel joint ventures (including mining, ore dressing, ironmaking, steelmaking, rolling and other branches) have an annual production capacity of 1.2 to 1.5 million tons of steel each.
• 8 nonferrous metallurgical enterprises with an annual output of 30,000 tons of tin, 15,000 tons of aluminium, 10,000 tons of molybdenum concentrate, 30,000 tons of tungsten concentrate, and 130,000 tons of barium-titanium concentrate.
• 8 mines and 1 coal complex with a total annual coal production capacity of 19.9 million tons; 3 coal washing plants with a total annual production capacity of 4.5 million tons.
• 1 oil refinery, processing 1 million tons of crude oil annually.
• 32 machine manufacturing plants, including 5 heavy machine manufacturing plants, with a total annual production capacity of 75,000 tons of metallurgical, mining and petroleum equipment and 36,000 tons of metal cutting machine tools; 1 automobile manufacturing plant and 1 tractor manufacturing plant, with an annual output of 60,000 trucks and 15,000 tractors; 1 ball bearing factory, with an annual output of 10 million bearings; and a number of defence industry enterprises.
• 16 power machinery and electric machinery manufacturing plants, including those for the manufacture of steam turbines and turbine generators, each with an annual capacity of 360,000 kilowatts and the ability to expand to 600,000 kilowatts, as well as manufacturing plants for mercury rectifiers, lightning arresters, insulating materials, high-voltage magnetic bottles, automatic telephone exchanges, capacitors, and advanced radio equipment.
• 7 chemical plants, including two nitrogen fertiliser plants and a synthetic rubber plant (using refinery waste gas as raw material), with an annual output of 180,000 tons of nitrogen fertiliser and 15,000 tons of synthetic rubber; there are also several defence industry enterprises.
• 10 thermal power stations with a total capacity of 413,000 kilowatts.
• 2 pharmaceutical industrial enterprises producing sulfonamides, penicillin and streptomycin and 1 food industrial enterprise - a starch factory.

Some of the projects that China had originally requested the Soviet Union to design were cancelled during this negotiation. This includes:

1. Those that China can run itself, such as textile printing and dyeing factories and small power stations;
2. Enterprises where geological resources are unknown and design cannot be carried out, mainly coal mines
3. Some of the projects were not necessary and could not have been built during the first five-year plan, such as a heavy machinery plant with an annual output of 100,000 tons.

During this negotiation, some projects were proposed by the Soviet side and agreed by the Chinese side, such as the electrical insulation material factory and the high-voltage magnetic bottle factory.

Together with the previous 50 companies, the total number of companies is 141. The Soviet Union completed 70-80% of the design work and 50-70% of the equipment manufacturing for these enterprises, and the remaining design and equipment manufacturing work was completed by Chinese enterprises with the help of Soviet experts. The manufacturing license for the product was provided free of charge to the Soviet Union, and the remaining part was worth approximately 3-3.5 billion rubles . In order to repay the above equipment and technical assistance, the Chinese government will supply the Soviet Union with 160,000 tons of tungsten concentrate , 110,000 tons of tin , 35,000 tons of molybdenum concentrate , 30,000 tons of antimony , 90,000 tons of rubber , as well as wool , jute , rice , pork , tea, etc. in quality and quantity.

According to the above agreement, by 1959, when these projects were completed, China's major heavy industrial products such as steel , coal , electricity , and oil would be roughly equal to the level of the Soviet Union's first five-year plan , and close to or exceeding Japan's level in 1937.

After the "5.15" Agreement in 1953, the four projects of the first 50 items, namely Shenyang Aircraft Repair Factory, Luoyang Aviation Engine Repair Factory, Nanchang Aircraft Repair Factory, and Zhuzhou Aviation Engine Repair Factory, were merged into the last 91 items; the design of two projects, namely Yakeshi Paper Factory and Yingchengzi Silver Mine No. 8 Shaft, was stopped, and the Xing'antai Coal Preparation Plant was separated from the Xing'antai No. 1 Shaft project, so that 141 items became 136 items.

In August 1954, the Wuhan Power Station was further cancelled from the 91 items in the memorandum and other documents. The arrester workshop was merged into the Xi'an High Voltage Porcelain Factory, the Fushun Magnesium Factory was merged into the Fushun aluminium Factory, and 11 new items were added:

1. Baotou Second Thermal Power Station
2. Gejiu Power Station (Phase II)
3. Chengdu Thermal Power Station
4. Luoyang Thermal Power Station
5. Zhuzhou Thermal Power Station
6. Jiamusi Thermal Power Station
7. Gannan Power Station
8. Silver Smelter
9. Luoyang Copper Processing Plant
10. Harbin Ball Bearing Factory
11. Anti-aircraft gun director factory

So far, 144 construction projects have been formed.

Before Khrushchev's first visit to China in September 1954 , he presided over a meeting of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the Soviet Communist Party and decided to significantly increase aid to China, add 15 more projects to the aforementioned 141 projects, and improve the technological content.

On October 12, 1954, the Chinese and Soviet governments signed in Beijing the "Protocol to the Agreement of May 15, 1953 on Soviet Government Assistance to the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China in Developing China's National Economy" and the "Memorandum of the Chinese Government's Request to the Soviet Government to Increase the Design and Assistance in the Construction of Certain Enterprises (October 12, 1954)". The former stipulated that the Soviet government agreed to assist the government of the People's Republic of China in building 13 new enterprises and renovating the Harbin Ball Bearing Factory; these 13 enterprises included the Baiyin Factory, the Nonferrous Metals Joint Factory, the Nonferrous Metals Processing Plant, a coal preparation plant, two coal mines, and seven thermal power plants. Reimbursement for the equipment supplied and technical assistance provided by the Soviet Union was made in accordance with the Sino-Soviet Trade Agreement in force at the time. In the latter (memorandum), 15 new items were added:

1. A shipyard
2. High speed diesel engine manufacturer
3. Medium speed diesel engine manufacturer
4. Harbin Steam Turbine Manufacturing Plant (i.e. steam turbine plant expansion)
5. Harbin Boiler Factory (Phase II)
6. Torpedo Factory
7. Marine Motor Workshop (Expansion)
8. Yellow River Sanmenxia Hydropower Project
9. Fushun East Open-Pit Mine (replacing the Hegang Mainland Shaft)
10. Fushun Second Oil Refinery (Expansion)
11. Oil Refinery Equipment Manufacturer
12. Small tractor manufacturer
13. Yunnan Dongchuan Nonferrous Metals Company (Copper Mine)
14. Yunnan Huize Nonferrous Metals Company (Lead and Zinc Mine)
15. Fulaerji Special Steel Plant (Phase II)
16. Anshan Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. No. 3 Steelmaking Plant

The above-mentioned seven naval ship equipment-related factories are further projects that must be added on the basis of the 515 Agreement and the 64 Naval Agreement in order to achieve the goal of naval ship manufacturing.

This brings the total to 162 projects, of which 35 are defence projects. During the implementation process, some projects were cancelled, and some were divided into two phases and thus regarded as two projects. The 156 construction projects identified by the end of 1954 became the focus of public propaganda for the first five-year plan, which was officially adopted and promulgated in 1955. These projects have been adjusted as the situation and understanding develop and change. But "156 items" as a promotional symbol will no longer be changed.

On April 7, 1956, China and the Soviet Union signed another agreement to add 55 aid projects, including 49 new industrial construction projects, three research institutes, the second phase of two power stations, and one duplicate project in the defence industry. Another 12 items were signed in September 1956. As of March 1957, China and the Soviet Union had signed agreements on a total of 255 construction projects, including 244 projects in the industrial sector and 11 non-industrial projects. Excluding the 13 projects that were counted twice, the 10 projects that were cancelled with the consent of both parties, and the 63 projects that could be completed by the end of 1957, a total of 169 projects were left for continued construction in the second five-year plan or required modification of the agreement.

In May and June 1957, the State Planning Commission negotiated with the Soviet side, and the Soviet Union agreed to China's policy of "building the country with diligence and thrift, and relying mainly on self-reliance". In accordance with China's wishes, the Soviet Union agreed to cancel a number of projects (10), reduce the scale of construction of a number of projects, and postpone the construction progress of a number of projects. The following measures have been taken for the 169 projects to be constructed during the second five-year plan period:

1. There are 28 projects whose construction will remain unchanged according to the scale and schedule of the original agreement. For these projects, all designs that can be carried out by China will be designed domestically, and most of the equipment that can be manufactured by China will be manufactured domestically when delivered.
2. The Soviet Union was relieved of its obligations to design and supply equipment for 51 projects, of which about 10 will be designed and manufactured by China itself. The Soviet Union will provide technical assistance to the construction of these projects at China's request, including providing technical information, dispatching experts, conducting design appraisals, and conducting research. The remaining 41 projects were cancelled and will not be built.
3. A total of 90 projects have been reduced in scale or had their construction progress postponed, including 9 projects that have been reduced in scale, 52 projects that have had their construction progress postponed, and 29 projects that have both been reduced in scale and postponed.

As a result, the Soviet Union continued to assist in the construction of 181 projects, including 63 projects completed in the first five years and 118 projects in the second five years.

In 1958 and 1959, China signed several agreements with the Soviet Union on the supply of complete sets of equipment, involving a total of more than 100 construction projects. Throughout the 1950s, China signed agreements with the Soviet Union to help it build a total of 304 complete equipment construction projects, including 64 separate workshops and devices. By 1960 , when Sino-Soviet relations broke down and the economic contract was terminated, 120 of the 304 projects were fully completed, 29 were basically completed, 89 had the contracts canceled, and 66 were continued to be built by China itself; 29 of the 64 individual workshops and devices were completed and 35 had the contracts canceled.

In the 1950s, China and Eastern European countries signed agreements to import 116 complete equipment construction projects, of which 108 were completed or basically completed, and 8 had their obligations released; 88 single equipment items, of which 81 were completed or basically completed, and 7 had their obligations released.

On July 16, 1960, the Soviet government suddenly notified the Chinese government that it had decided to withdraw all Soviet experts in China from July 28 to September 1, 1960 . By the end of 1960, 133 of the "156 projects" had been completed, and 17 were under construction.

The basic materials of the “156 items” have not been systematically organized, and there are many different opinions on which items are included and how many items there actually are. After a long-term investigation and research on a large number of archives from the State Planning Commission, the Central Archives , and the State Economic Commission , the General Bureau of Capital Construction of the State Planning Commission compiled for the first time the formation, changes, construction scale, and progress of the “156 Projects”. On June 8, 1983, it wrote “The Status of the 156 Construction Projects in the First Five-Year Plan (The Actual Number of Projects under Construction)”, confirming that there were 150 projects .  Among the 156 items determined when the first five-year plan was promulgated in 1955, two items were counted twice because the Gannan Power Station was changed to Chengdu Power Station and Shaanxi Factory 422 was counted twice. Therefore, the actual number is 154 items. Among the 154 projects, four projects were not built, including the Second Automobile Manufacturing Plant and the Second Tractor Manufacturing Plant because their sites had not been determined, and the Shanxi Lu'an No. 1 Vertical Shaft and the Shanxi Datong Baituyao Vertical Shaft because of geological problems. There are 150 projects actually under formal construction.

During the First Five-Year Plan period, the total investment in China's economic and cultural and educational construction was more than 76 billion yuan. Among the 150 projects actually under construction, the total estimated investment was 18.78 billion yuan (the original estimated total investment was 20.27 billion yuan, but the suspension of construction of the Sanmenxia Water Conservancy Project and the reduction of investment in military projects resulted in a reduction of 1.49 billion yuan). The actual completion amount was 19.63 billion yuan, accounting for 104.5%.

In 2014, the China-Russia Friendship Association and other organizations initiated the protection of the “156 Projects” industrial heritage and issued the "Proposal for the Protection of the “156 Projects” Industrial Heritage".