The opening of China’s first new river-to-sea canal since 1949 – which will boost trade links with Southeast Asia – could transform the economy of the country’s landlocked southwestern interior in ways comparable to the Yangtze’s role in Shanghai’s rise, according to its operator.
The 134.2km (83.4 mile) Pinglu Canal, which opened on Wednesday, links a major tributary of the Pearl River in the southern Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region with the Gulf of Tonkin, known as the Beibu Gulf in China, serving as a short cut for cargo moving between western China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).
The project was prioritised to ease severe congestion at traditional logistics hubs and additional projects were already under way to maximise the waterway’s economic potential, the operator said.
“China was forced to build a new canal by the aggravating ‘chokepoints’ along the Yangtze and Pearl rivers,” executives from Guangxi Pinglu Canal Group said during an event at the annual China-Asean Expo on Thursday in Nanning, Guangxi’s capital.
“Goods from Sichuan, Chongqing, Yunnan and other western regions bound for Southeast Asia are usually stuck in major hubs like Shanghai and Guangzhou as well as the Three Gorges Dam, where ships may have to wait for days to pass.”
Construction on the canal, which involved levelling mountains and carving out artificial waterways through Guangxi’s rugged terrain, took 48 months following regulatory approval. To widen and deepen river beds, engineers deployed heavy-duty dredgers designed for island-building operations in the South China Sea, local media reported, citing the canal’s chief engineer, Wei Dejian.
The vessels blasted through rock and sucked up sand at a rate of up to 6,000 cubic metres (211,888 cubic feet) per hour, excavating as deep as 35 metres (114.8 feet) below the riverbed. More than 315 million cubic metres (11.12 billion cubic feet) of soil and granules were removed to make way for the canal.
The operator noted that Pinglu was one of only three waterways in China, alongside the Yangtze and Pearl rivers, capable of accommodating 5,000-tonne capacity vessels travelling in both directions.
“Its significance cannot be overstated ... If the Yangtze’s shipping capacity was behind the rise of Shanghai and other cities like Nanjing and Wuhan, Pinglu may also bring the same change to southwestern China, which is still an economic backwater,” Wei told local media.
But to accommodate that much shipping, engineers had their work cut out. The operational demands required the canal to be at least 80 metres (262.5 feet) wide and 6.7 metres (22 feet) deep, with a minimum turning radius of 360 metres (1,181 feet) at bends. Numerous bridges were demolished or raised to ensure sufficient navigational clearance.
Overcoming a 65-metre (213.3 feet) height difference between the canal and its coastal outlet in Qinzhou, where the canal empties into the Gulf of Tonkin, posed a significant obstacle. Engineers addressed it by building three massive two-way ship locks, some as deep as 40 metres (131.2 feet).
Despite the authorities’ promise of economic benefits, the project faced scrutiny and even resistance from some Guangxi residents.
There were widespread concerns over inadequate water during the region’s dry season, which runs from October to March and can bring long spells of low rainfall, according to a Pinglu Canal Group expert who declined to be named.
Residents in Qinzhou and other areas also raised objections over potential saltwater intrusion during low-discharge months, which could threaten local freshwater supplies.
To mitigate these risks, engineers incorporated water-saving designs, including storage pools stacked on top of each other at major ship locks. The coming dry season could provide the first real-world test in a region known for its fragile ecosystem.
On Wednesday, the governments of Guangxi and Yunnan launched a partnership framework to streamline shipping along the Pinglu Canal. The new route is expected to shorten journeys by 560km (348 miles), reducing transport costs and travel time. Previously, export goods from Yunnan had to follow a tortuous route to Guangzhou before being shipped overseas.
Guangxi is also promoting supporting projects intended to unlock more of the canal’s economic potential, including another proposed waterway linking the central province of Hunan with Guangxi and connecting to the Pinglu Canal. -- SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
