Maritime Silk Road Opening of New Berths and New Routes

COSCO SHIPPING - Quanzhou Shihu Port enter the era of ‘Large  Ships and Large Ports.’

On February 15th, the opening ceremony of the new berths and routes was held at COSCO SHIPPING Ports Quan Zhou Pacific Terminal(CSP Quanzhou Terminal). Attendees included the Deputy Party Secretary and Mayor of Quanzhou CAI Zhansheng, Executive Vice President of COSCO SHIPPING Group LIN Ji, General Manager of COSCO SHIPPING Holdings, Chairman of COSCO SHIPPING Lines,  Chairman and CEO of OOCL and Chairman of COSCO SHIPPING Ports YANG Zhijian, Member of the Standing Committee of Quanzhou, Director of the United Front Department and Deputy Mayor LIU Linshuang, Party Secretary of Shishi HUANG Chunhui, Deputy Director of Customs of Quanzhou SHEN Qinghui, Director of the Quanzhou Maritime Bureau LI Zhiqiang, Director of Immigration Inspection of Quanzhou SUN De, Director of the Quanzhou Transport Bureau.

LIU Dewang, Director of the Quanzhou Commerce Bureau and Director of the Office of Port of Entry and Exit of Quanzhou ZHANG Xiaohong, and Deputy Director of the Development Centre of Fujian Quanzhou Port RUAN Qiru. The attendees pressed a button to symbolize the official opening of the berths.

The horn sounded, and the ‘XIN QUANZHOU’ and ‘OOCL LE HAVRE’ vessels under the dual branding of COSCO SHIPPING departed from the new berths, capable of handling vessels up to 100,000 DWT inside, at Shihu Port Area to Port of Singapore and Port Klang respectively.

Witnessed by more than 200 representatives from the ports, liners, and cargo owner industries, the port of Quanzhou, known for its historical importance during the Song and Yuan Dynasties and for being the start of the Maritime Silk Road, officially enters into the era of ‘Large Ships and Large Ports’.

YANG Zhijian said in his speech: "After the new berth is officially put into operation, it will help Quanzhou Shihu Port to be further upgraded to a first-class comprehensive port in the western region of Taiwan Strait.

This time, COSCO SHIPPING Lines and OOCL, subsidiaries of COSCO SHIPPING Group has newly opened two international container liner routes to Port of Singapore and Port Klang from Shihu Port Area in Quanzhou, adding new vitality to the strengthening of international economic and trade exchanges in Quanzhou. COSCO SHIPPING Ports will take this new route as a new starting point, leverage on Quanzhou’s well-developed industrial clusters, deepen the cooperation between ports and shipping companies, strengthen the linkage between ports, attract more new routes to call here, and build Shihu Port Area into a gathering place for international trade and marine cargo. It will help the thousand-year-old port to further connect with the world, and contribute new strength to the economic prosperity and development of Quanzhou and even Fujian."

LIU Linshuang, Member of the Standing Committee of Quanzhou, Director of the United Front Department and Deputy Mayor, said in his speech: "The official operation of the 100,000-ton new berth will surely further enhance the scale of the port and maximize the role of port hub; the two new RCEP international routes to Singapore and Malaysia will also help further expand the "Silk Road Shipping" and open up a new channel of "direct in and out" for international trade. Quanzhou and COSCO SHIPPING Group will grasp the opportunity of operation of new berths and the first voyage of the new route today as a new starting point, we will further deepen cooperation in terms of shipping capacity, supply chain industry projects, to promote the in depth integration of the Maritime Silk Road Port and shipping giant, and jointly promote the construction of "Maritime Silk Road Quanzhou" to revive the glory of the ancient Citong
port!"

Berths 5 and 6 in the Shihu Area of Quanzhou Port were constructed by CSP Quanzhou Terminal and include two container berths that can handle vessels of up to 100,000 tons and associated infrastructure such as container yards and is an important construction project of Fujian Province. The concepts of ‘Smart Ports’ and ‘Green and Low Carbon Development’ were integrated into the design and construction process. At the opening ceremony, 5 unmanned automated trucks participated in 

loading and unloading the ships. The automated trucks rely on proprietary self-driving technology. They can achieve instant communication and seamless connection with the terminal’s control center, allowing for completely unmanned automated operations during all times within the port area. The new berths are also equipped with shore power systems, already available at all berths in the Shihu Port Area, to reflect COSCO SHIPPING Group’s low-carbon development strategy and support for China’s carbon emission goals.

Currently, only Phase 1 of the Project has begun operations. When the entire project is completed, the throughput capacity of the Shihu Area of Quanzhou Port will be increased by 40% to 3 million TEU per year, which will better serve the domestic and international container transport needs of Quanzhou city and its surrounding areas. As the new berths begin to operate, COSCO SHIPPING Group will take advantage of its internal synergy, as there will be two new Southeast Asia trunk routes operating under dual brands (COSCO SHIPPING/OOCL). While satisfying the demand for goods transportation between the local area and Southeast Asia and expanding new connections through the Port of Singapore and Port Klang to elsewhere in

The new routes will also open pathways between Quanzhou and Europe, the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and Africa. This will provide the Quanzhou area with faster and more efficient transport links and more chances for economic development. It is also a meaningful step in building an efficient and streamlined transport network and promoting
economic development in the Quanzhou Bay Area. Quanzhou has a robust economy, a strong private sector, and an important industrial center along China’s southeastern coast. Industries include petrochemical, textiles, building equipment, mechanical equipment, electronics, and health products. Quanzhou also has a long history of commerce and trade.

During the Song and Yuan Dynasties, the ‘Citong Port’ was known as the largest port in the Orient, with trade links to more than 100 countries, making the city a hub of trade activity that attracted visitors and merchants from all over the world. COSCO SHIPPING Group has operated Quanzhou Shihu Port as a subsidiary terminal since 2006. After many years of hard work, Shihu Port is now connected to major ports in China and is on track to become an important node in domestic shipping in the Southeastern coast region. There are also direct routes to nearby ‘Belt and Road’ countries such as the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, and Japan. The ports and roads are bustling with container trucks and ships, carrying more and more Chinese goods from Quanzhou to countries worldwide along the ‘Belt and Road.’

2023 coincides with the 10th anniversary of the ‘Belt and Road Initiative’, and as the BRI and RCEP start to take shape, the industry and economy of Quanzhou will enjoy many significant opportunities to develop further. CSP Quanzhou Terminal will grasp these opportunities, using the opening of the two new berths to play a role in the ‘dual circulation’ of the Chinese economy. We will adhere to the concept of ‘The Ports for ALL’ to work together with our global partners to improve our service quality based on strengthening Quanzhou’s role as a domestic trade hub and expanding Quanzhou Shihu Port into a regional node targeted towards Southeast Asia, as well as assist Quanzhou in its industrial transformation. We aspire that the new era of ‘Large Ships and Large Ports’ will enable more clients to use the port to ship more Chinese goods from here to all over the world and for the historic port city of Quanzhou to continue to play an important role in the new era of the Maritime Silk Road.

Cosco Shipping