related media assets (image or videos) available. Click to see the gallery.

2 related media assets (image or videos) available. Click to see the gallery.

In the second of a 3-part series from China's "rust belt", Jeremy Koh visits Hegang in China's northeast, where moves are afoot to develop new industries following the mining sector's slump.

HEGANG, China: Sun Qiuhe has been driving a taxi in the coal city of Hegang since he was laid off by a local mining company about a year ago.

A native of the northeast, where people are known for their candour and forthright manner, Sun appeared embarrassed when he said that his wife, a teacher, is now the family’s main bread winner.



He said: “Life now is very different from before. For example, I can’t afford to buy cigarettes anymore and I like to joke about it, that I am now of a lower class.



"My wife earns more than I do and the burden to support the family is now loaded on her.”

The 32-year-old is among hundreds of thousands of coal workers made redundant in recent years in China’s "rust belt" provinces.

He used to work for the Heilongjiang Longmay Holding Mining Group, the biggest coal enterprise in China's northeast. Unfortunately for him, it is also one of the biggest loss-making coal producers in China.

#Hegang, in #China's rust belt #Heilongjiang, is among more than 60 cities identified by the central government as resource-depleted cities. pic.twitter.com/5myufUkTRM — Jeremy Koh (@JeremyKohCNA) October 2, 2017

The coal sector including companies in Hegang, a city of about one million, was among the most severely hit in China’s "rust belt". They were affected by China’s economic downturn, which led to rising capacity, falling prices and weak demand.

The situation is even more dire for Sun.



His hometown in Heilongjiang province is among more than 60 cities identified by the central government as resource-depleted cities. These are cities whose development models badly need a makeover or they risk dying out completely.

They used to be rich in natural resources such as coal and timber, but those are now exhausted after years of helping to realise China's economic miracle.



But the challenge for President Xi Jinping is more than just trying to rejuvenate a few dozen ghost cities.



There have been concerns that if nothing is done, the entire "rust belt" region, home to more than 100 million people, will die a slow death. Last year, the central government pledged about US$250 billion to revive the area.



Analysts also said that for cities like Hegang, a direct bankruptcy or sizable layoffs could prompt social unrest.



In 2015, for instance, thousands marched on the streets of Hegang to protest delayed salaries. The organisers were arrested and jailed.

This is why many miners here are wary of speaking to foreign media, including Sun, who only spoke to Channel NewsAsia.



The actions of workers like him are being watched closely because China's bloody past has taught the Communist Party to fear chaos above all.

Some analysts have also said that the staying power of the Communist Party has been linked to its ability to deliver continued economic progress and jobs.



Bian Yongzu, an expert at the Chongyang Institute of Financial Studies at Renmin University of China, said: “The government has demonstrated great determination to try to solve the region’s problems. This is a political task and they’ll have to solve all the problems, so it’s definitely a top priority.”



A NEW ERA?



The heavy investment appears to have worked, with latest data showing economic improvement in the three "rust belt" provinces.



Policy support and funds have been poured in to help develop new industries here.



Policy support and funds have been poured in to help develop new industries in #Hegang & graphite has been identified as a new growth driver pic.twitter.com/JK3bYyfFRj — Jeremy Koh (@JeremyKohCNA) October 2, 2017

In Hegang, graphite, a type of mineral that is used in making lubricants and lithium-ion batteries, has been identified as a new growth driver for the weary coal city.



That policy shift has benefited companies like Aoyu Graphite Group, a local manufacturer of natural flake graphite.



Chen Rui, the group's operations director, said: “The support from the central government towards Heilongjiang province has never been this strong. We can really feel it, now the policy for the revival of the northeastern old industrial area has been elevated to the highest level.



"They’ll definitely come out with some supporting policies.”



The company’s revenue is now more than 10 times what it was 10 years ago, but the number of people it hires to keep the machines running is about one-tenth of what it used to be.



This is good news for a fading coal city that seeks to move up the value chain. But there is a drawback - even if Hegang is rejuvenated, it may still have no place for labourers like Sun who have little education and low-level skills.