Guangzhou has announced a port expansion plan that will up its cargo capacity to 700 million tonnes and increase the number of standard containers it handles annually to 27 million by 2026. The three-year plan will see investment of “more than 15 billion yuan in ports and shipping”.
The port – one of the largest in China – handled 675 million tons of cargo and 25.41 million standard containers in 2023, according to the Guangzhou Port Authority. It ranked fifth and sixth in the world in those respective categories last year.
This will be Guangzhou’s fourth three-year action plan promoting the “continuous improvement of the international shipping hub” launched since 2015, the Port Authority said.
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The project will also boost the volume of cargo transported between rail and the seaport and number of vehicles using the port. Drones and smart technologies are set to play an increasing role in port logistics,
The plan will “explore new models and new business forms of port and shipping economy, comprehensively improve the level of port intelligence, and accelerate the greening process of ports and shipping,” the Port Authority said.
In the World Bank’s 2023 Container Port Performance Index, Guangzhou’s port was ranked as the eighth most efficient in the world.
