The Pinglu Canal, a large china-ASEAN convenient water transport channel, is about to burst out of its cocoon

Nanning, 19 Jan (China News Service) -- At the fifth session of the 13th People's Congress of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, which is being held here, "building a new land-sea corridor in the western region at a high level and starting construction of the Pinglu Canal at a high level" was included in the 2022 work plan of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region People's Government and became a hot topic of discussion among the deputies.

More than 100 years ago, Dr. Sun Yat-sen proposed the concept of opening up the Pearl River, the West River and the Beibu Gulf and opening the Pinglu Canal in the "Founding Strategy".

The picture shows the aerial photograph of the Pinglu Canal in Qinzhou, Guangxi, on January 11. (Drone photo) Photo by Wang Weichen

Standing at the edge of the shajing port wharf in Qinzhou City, Guangxi Province, the Maowei Sea in front of you is sparkling, which is the outlet of the new western land-sea channel (Pinglu) Canal (hereinafter referred to as the Pinglu Canal) that is about to start construction.

"I didn't expect that at the age of retirement, I would still have the honor of participating in the planning and construction of this major national project." Wei Sining, chief engineer of the Qinzhou Municipal Transportation Bureau, said that as the first grand canal connected by the river and the sea built since the founding of New China, the Pinglu Canal flows from the Pingtang River estuary of the Xijin Reservoir in Hengzhou, Nanning, Guangxi, flows into the Qinjiang River through Luwu Town, Lingshan County, Qinzhou, and goes south to the Shajing Port in Qinzhou.

The Pinglu Canal with a total investment of about 68 billion yuan is planned to be about 140 kilometers long, of which about 120 kilometers are in the river section of Qinzhou, about 6 kilometers of new rivers are excavated in the watershed, which can pass 3,000-ton sea vessels, and the annual freight volume can reach more than 55 million tons on a single line and nearly 100 million tons on a double line.

The Pinglu Canal connects the "golden waterway" of the Xijiang River and the Beibu Gulf Port, is a newly opened strategic corridor for river-sea intermodal transport, and is a major measure to build a China-ASEAN international corridor, and is included in the "Master Plan for the New Land-Sea Corridor in the West".

"The Pinglu Canal 'connects the river to the sea', integrating the advantages of Guangxi's coastal, border and riverside areas to form an overall synergy, will further enrich the mode of transportation of the new land and sea corridor in the western region, become the most convenient water transport channel for China-ASEAN trade exchanges, and ASEAN goods will be able to enter the Chinese mainland market more conveniently and at low cost." Lei Xiaohua, deputy director of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies of the Guangxi Academy of Social Sciences, said in an interview with a reporter from the China News Agency.

As one of the important nodes of the new land-sea corridor in the west, Qinzhou has opened the "iron-sea combined transport + domestic and foreign trade same-ship transport" train, and has achieved normal connection with the China-Europe express train, and the ocean route has reached South America, South Africa and other ports. "The construction of the Pinglu Canal is conducive to the formation of a new node connecting ASEAN in Qinzhou." Wang Xiongchang, deputy to the Guangxi People's Congress and mayor of Qinzhou City, said in an exclusive interview with a reporter from the China News Agency.

At present, the preliminary work of the Pinglu Canal Project has been accelerated, and a series of plans such as land space, industrial space, transportation network, canal port, and box industry development have been launched. An efficient and direct railway fast track connecting the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the Guangxi Yulin-Qinzhou Intercity Railway, is being planned and advanced. "The construction of the Yulin-Qinzhou intercity railway, connecting the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area to the east, connecting the sea to the west to connect with ASEAN, and connecting and extending the integration of urban and rural areas with hong Kong and industry to the south, is conducive to realizing the deep integration of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area with the Pinglu Canal Economic Belt, and even the Beibu Bay City Cluster, forming a new pattern of connecting the sea and connecting with ASEAN." Wang Xiongchang said.

As China's closest provincial capital to ASEAN, Nanning will also strive to become a "regional modern international comprehensive transportation hub" during the "14th Five-Year Plan" period, and is expected to become a shipping center for public water, molten iron and river-sea intermodal transport in the western region. Nanning city officials said that it will vigorously promote the development of the entire shipping industry chain, strengthen cooperation with countries along the new land-sea corridor in the west and domestic provinces and cities, and focus on cultivating the Pinglu Canal industrial cluster.

Chen Hongqi, deputy to the Guangxi People's Congress and secretary of the party leading group of the Transportation Department of guangxi zhuang autonomous region, said that after the completion of the Pinglu Canal, Nanning's seaward mileage from Qinzhou Port through the Pinglu Canal is only 291 kilometers, which is more than 560 kilometers shorter than going to sea through Guangdong, which will open up more economical and convenient passages for Guangxi, Yunnan, Guizhou and other provinces and regions, as well as the southwest, central south, and northwest regions. (End)

Source: China News Network