At around 10:20 a.m. on September 16, the Pinglu Canal, a backbone project of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor in western China, officially opened to navigation. As the whistle of the vessel making the inaugural voyage echoed across the water, the canal opened the shortest, most economical, and most convenient maritime gateway for southwest China to reach ASEAN markets.
The navigation ceremony was held at the Madao Hub of the Pinglu Canal in Qinzhou, Guangxi, with four linked event sites set up at Nanning Port, Qinzhou Port, Xinfu Water Transport Comprehensive Service Area, and Qinzhou Water Transport Comprehensive Service Area. On the same day, the “Nanning–Can Tho, Vietnam” international trade route and the “Nanning–Yangpu, Hainan” domestic trade route began operations in both directions. Fourteen cargo vessels loaded with sugar, building materials, minerals, steel, and other goods successfully passed through the ship locks and embarked on their inaugural voyages. Meanwhile, 16 vessels carrying coal, iron ore, bauxite, fertilizer, high-calcium stone, and other cargoes sailed in an orderly manner into the Xijiang River basin. Four waterborne passenger routes also opened simultaneously.
Construction of the Pinglu Canal began on August 28, 2022, with a total investment of approximately 72.7 billion yuan (RMB, same below). The canal stretches 134.2 kilometers, starting from the mouth of the Pingtang River in the Xijin Reservoir area of Hengzhou, Nanning, running southward through Luwu Town in Lingshan County, Qinzhou, and connecting directly to the Beibu Gulf via the Qinjiang River.
The canal has the highest navigation standard of any canal in China. Built to Grade I inland waterway standards, it can accommodate vessels of up to 5,000 tonnes. Three major cascade hubs, Madao, Qishi, and Qingnian, have been completed along the canal. The project has achieved four world-leading records: the highest navigation capacity among comparable canals worldwide, the fastest vessel passage through ship locks of its kind, the largest water-saving lock head difference of its kind, and the largest water-saving ship lock among inland waterways worldwide.
Following the opening of the Pinglu Canal, cargo from southwest China can reach the sea via the canal, shortening the inland waterway distance by more than 560 kilometers compared with traditional routes. The voyage to major ASEAN ports will also be significantly shortened, while overall logistics costs are expected to fall by 18 to 30 percent. The canal is expected to save more than 5 billion yuan in transportation costs for society each year.
“The canal is not merely a logistics corridor. It could also serve as a lever for closer integration between the industrial chains of western China and ASEAN, turning geographical proximity into closer industrial cooperation and promoting a shift from trade in goods toward deeper integration across upstream and downstream segments of the industrial chains,” said Yu Hong, a senior research fellow at the East Asian Institute of the National University of Singapore.
Photos – CNS
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