BEIJING - The gross production value of China's marine sector surged to 4.557 trillion yuan ($711,153 million) last year, marking a 10.4 percent jump year-on-year, new figures from the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) show.

Of the gross, 2.65 trillion yuan was generated by added value, and the rest from marine-related industries, SOA spokesman Shi Qingfeng said Friday.

"In 2011, the country's marine electric power industry reported a relatively sharp increase as many coastal wind power plants were put into operation. Emerging industries such as marine biological medicines and the utilization of sea water also saw fast development," according to Shi.

The spokesman said the country's marine-related industries had 34.2 million employees last year, some 700,000 more than in 2010.

Last year, the Chinese government approved pilot programs for the development of the marine economy in the coastal provinces of Shandong, Zhejiang and Guangdong.

China has abundant marine resources, with its 3 million square km of offshore waters and 32,000 km of coastline. It also has a proven marine oil reserve of 24.6 billion tons and natural gas reserves of 1.6 billion cubic meters.