Over the medium term, Alibaba Group and its financing partners will commit between RMB20 billion and RMB30 billion (US$3 billion to US$4.5 billion). The company hopes to spark a total investment of more than RMB100 billion (US$15 billion) in logistics development in China by others partners in the e-commerce eco-system.
"It's clear that logistics is a crucial link in the e-commerce eco-system and in order for Chinese entrepreneurs to reach their future growth goals, this sector needs to develop rapidly in China," said Jack Ma, chairman and CEO of Alibaba Group.
"Hopefully within 10 years' time, anyone placing an order online from anywhere in China will receive their goods within eight hours, allowing for the virtual urbanisation of every village across China," he added.
Alibaba will focus on providing relevant value-added services in accordance with product vertical-specific needs, and mobilise efforts to establish an integrated logistics platform that aims to bring together all players in the industry from warehousing to delivery.
It will invest in the establishment of a nationwide warehouse network across China to address the key bottleneck facing the logistics industry, and offer warehousing facility support to small Chinese exporters.