China’s Pinglu Canal in operation, to cut logistics cost by 30%

China opens the Pinglu Canal, giving its landlocked southwest a shortcut

to the coast and overseas markets.

Designed for vessels of up to 5,000 tonnes, the canal shortens the

inland waterway journey for goods from southwest China to the sea by more

than 560 kilometres compared with traditional routes through ports in

Guangdong Province.

Built at a cost of 72.7 billion yuan, the 134.2-kilometre canal runs

from Hengzhou to the Beibu Gulf, the closest maritime outlet for

much of southwest China.

The canal stretches along the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor,

a strategic trade route connecting China's inland regions with ASEAN and

other global markets.

It is expected to reduce overall logistics costs by 18 to 30% and

cut transportation costs by 5 billion yuan annually.

It is the first river-to-sea canal project planned and coordinated at the

national level since the founding of the PRC in 1949.