A ship loaded with 204 heavy-duty foreign trade containers departed Wuhan Jingkai Port in the Wuhan Economic & Technological Development Zone (WHDZ) -- in Central China's Hubei province -- on April 22, according to WHDZ officials.
They said it was heading for the east coast megacity of Shanghai, marking the launch of WHDZ’s Wuhan-Shanghai container shipping route.
Located in the WHDZ, Wuhan Jingkai Port is a Class I open port expansion approved by the State Council, China’s Cabinet.
It is the only container terminal in the WHDZ. It has three 5,000-ton deep-water berths on the Yangtze River, that can stretch to accommodate 8,000-ton vessels, with a total annual container throughput of 500,000 twenty-foot equivalent units, or standard containers.
Officials said the opening of the container shipping route from Wuhan Jingkai Port would further integrate Wuhan's high-quality port logistics resources, adding that it will open up another new logistics channel in Wuhan and play an important role in stabilizing foreign trade -- as well as promoting the stable development of the international logistics supply chain.
They added that in addition, the opening of the route will also serve companies surrounding the WHDZ and attract container ships from the upper reaches of Yangtze River, such as at Chongqing, to transit through Wuhan Jingkai Port.
