Port--Railway--Aviation--Highway--Waterway--Telecommunication--Electric Powers

Ningbo Port, a Bright Pearl of China's Ports

The Port of Ningbo has a long history of over 1200 years. During more than 20 years of China's opening and reforms, it emerged magically in the east of China and developed rapidly, especially in the 9th Five-year Plan period. The cargo throughput of the whole port in 2000 broke through 100 million tons, becoming one of the few ports of the world with 100-million ton cargo throughput.

The Port of Ningbo, famous for its deep-water, smooth current, a calm sea, vast dockland, no freeze and no silt, is one of the four international deep-water ports along China's coastline on which the State has laid great emphasis to develop. It's also the only one to receive ships of 300,000 tonnage. It's of great importance to the construction of Shanghai International Shipping Center to exploit the deep-water advantages of the Port of Ningbo.

The superiorities of the Port of Ningbo are as follows:

First: deep entry channel. The channel to Beilun Port Area of Ningbo Port is normally 30 to 100 meters deep, even the shallowest section of 4 km long is over 21meters deep at high tide. So ships of 200,000 to 300,000 tonnage may enter and leave the port freely. In 1995, Grand Phoenix of 300,000 tonnage was successfully piloted into the port for operation. In 2000, the damaged foreign ship Weiser with 270,000 DWT and 20.5 meters draft was piloted into the port for help once more. They are the largest ships that have ever been piloted in China.

Second: good geographical location. The Port of Ningbo is well situated at the T-shaped joining point of China's coastline and the golden waterway of the Yangtze River. Convenient traffic connects the coastal ports of China and covers directly the whole East China and the economically developed Yangtze River Valley, through river-sea joint transport via the Yangtze River and the Grand Canal. Facing the Pacific Ocean, it links directly East Asia and the whole round-the-Pacific region.

Third: large berths. There are 132 berths of over 500 tonnage including 17 of over 50,000 tonnage. Among these are the 50,000-tonnage berth for liquid chemicals, the dedicated container berth for the 4th and the 5th generation container vessel, the ore transshipment berth for 200,000-tonnage vessel (also for vessel of 300,000 tonnage) and the 250,000-tonnage terminal for crude oil. All these berths are the largest of China at present. The container berths of 1238 meters long are under construction, the water depth at dock apron will be 15 meters. They are fitted with huge bridge container cranes with an outreach of 60.5 meters, satisfying the need of berthing and operation for the largest international container ships.

Fourth: complete port functions. The Port of Ningbo is a comprehensive, multi-functional port with complete small, medium and large berths. Good conditions of cargo collection and distribution are provided. Railway and highway go directly to its port areas. Transshipment of water-to-water and water-to-land and also joint transport of sea, road and railway can be carried out at the port. Business scope covers the discharge, storage and transfer of ore, coal, crude oil, international container, general cargo and liquid chemicals. Since 1991, the Port has devoted major efforts to developing international container transport, supported by the fine deep-water port. Up to now, 50 shipping lines of regular container services have been opened, including 10 ocean-going main lines to Europe, Eastern America, Western America, South America and the Middle East and 28 off-shore lines to Japan, Korea, Hongkong, Taiwan and South-eastern Asia. Meanwhile several lines for domestic trade have also been opened to the coastal ports of Mainland China and these along the Yangtze River. There are 220 container liner services each month in all.

Fifth: great developing potential. The Port of Ningbo possesses an exploitable deep-water coastline of 121 km, 19 of which are capable for construction of 62 container berths. The container handling capacity will be 15 million TEU if all the berths are built and completed. The Port enjoys unique natural conditions: Zhoushan Islands serve as the natural defense in the front, so there is no need to build any breakwater. There are complete facilities at the rear of the port area and the surroundings of the port are nice. Fewer investments, shorter period and quicker in providing results feature the building of wharves at the Port of Ningbo.

The unique deep-water advantages are urging the Port to develop more rapidly. Since 1996, the cargo throughput of the Port has been increasing at an average rate of 11% per year and container throughput at 43.5% per year. In 2000, cargo throughput reached 115.47million tons and container throughput reached 902,000 TEU. It has become one of the ports of Mainland China, which developed most quickly in container transport.

It is the first year of the new century, in which the Port of Ningbo will start to march on higher targets. It will persist in managing according to market requirements. At the time of consolidating the basic sources of ore, coal and oil, the Port will strengthen the development of container transport and invest more in the construction of port infrastructure and in technical renovation, striving for 120 million tons' cargo throughput and the breakthrough of 1.2 million TEU for container throughput. Since the beginning of the 10th Five-year Plan, the Port of Ningbo has determined its goal to be built into a first-class international deep-water port and an important arterial port for international container transport. It's speeding up towards modernization. During the 10th Five-year Plan period, the Port will focus on further optimizing port layout and improving port functions, complete the building of 4 berths of the 3rd phase Project of Beilun Port Area for the 6th generation container ships. One of them has been put into trial operation in March this year. Several berths of the 4th phase Project will also be built for the largest container ships of the world in the future. They are 3000 meters in length. While quickening the construction of basic facilities, the Port will continue to expand agency business, develop shipping market, increase ocean-going main and feeder lines, increase the number of regular liner service and take vigorous action to extend interior hinterland. It will strive by all means to enlarge the goods canvassing network and improve its system to speed up the establishment of river-sea through transport and rail-road joint management of container. By doing so the competitive power will be enhanced in international container transport and transshipment, the increasing rate will be kept at 25% and more. By the end of the 10th Five-year Plan period, cargo throughput of the Port of Ningbo will reach 150 million tons and container throughput will breakthrough 3 million TEU.