China's First Inland Bonded Port Zone Slated for Chongqing

[2009-12-29 09:36:41]


On November 12th 2008, the State Council officially approved the establishment of the Cuntan Bonded Port Zone in Lianglu, Chongqing. This represents China's first inland bonded port zone and the first bonded port zone with the dual function of "water port + airport".

Chongqing is endowed with the advantages of connecting the east with the west and linking the south with the north. Straddling the Yangtze River, the municipality is rich in navigation resources, dotted with ports, accessible to the sea via the Yangtze, and can accommodate 5,000-tonne class vessels all year round. Following the construction of the Three Gorges Reservoir, the maximum water level can reach as high as 175 m, allowing 8,000-tonne class vessels and 10,000-tonne class vessels to sail up the Yangtze all the way to downtown Chongqing.

Chongqing has the largest port and an airport with the greatest development potential in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River. The Cuntan port in Chongqing is the largest and technologically most advanced special-purpose container terminal in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River. Phase I construction work of Cuntan port began in January 2006, while Phase II commenced construction in September 2007 and is scheduled for completion by the end of 2009. Phase III work began at the end of 2008 and is due for completion by 2011. Upon the full completion of the Cuntan port zone, its annual container throughput can amount to 2 million TEUs.

Compared with the coastal regions, Chongqing has the advantages of low land and energy costs, a relatively strong industrial base, and huge market potential. All these make the municipality a magnet for medium- to high-end manufacturing industries. According to surveys, to transport a TEU container from Chongqing to Shanghai, the freight charge by highway is around Rmb20,000, the freight by rail is some Rmb6,000, and the freight by water down the Yangtze is only about Rmb3,000. The edge of using water transport is obvious. However, since most of the provinces in western China are landlocked and do not have any inland river wharves, the transportation of cargoes for foreign trade has to rely on railway and highway, resulting in high logistics cost. As such, the conditions for developing an open economy are inferior when compared with the coastal provinces. Hence, setting up a bonded port zone in Chongqing can provide favourable conditions for the foreign trade goods of its neighbouring areas to enter and exit the country by water transport along the Yangtze.
Source: China Trade Data
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