NANJING, March 20 (Xinhua) -- Chinese telecommunications company ZTE has invested 20 billion yuan (3.16 billion U.S. dollars) on a 5G product base in Nanjing, in east China's Jiangsu Province.

The center will focus on developing 5G products and wireless devices, the company said Tuesday.

"5G technology will be hundreds times faster 4G," said Pang Shengqing, executive vice president of ZTE, "It is the future of the mobile communication industry."

ZTE has over 20 partners working on 5G technology across the world, Pang added.

"The project is expected to generate production value of 40 billion yuan after it being put into operation in 2022," said Pang.

ZTE is a leading global provider of telecommunications equipment, networking solutions and one of the world's fastest growing smartphone manufacturers. It unveiled the world's first 5G smartphone in Barcelona last year.

China is expected to be the world's largest 5G market by 2025, according to GSMA Intelligence, a global mobile think tank

The China Academy of Information and Communications Technology has predicted that 5G will drive 6.3 trillion yuan of economic output in China by 2030.