Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG) and THE Alliance have entered into an agreement to test out onshore container drop-offs for cargoes bound for Yangshan Deepwater Port, which is farther from Shanghai.
Opened in 2005, Yangshan port is built on the islands of Greater and Lesser Yangshan, which are actually part of Zhejiang province, but is administered by SIPG to facilitate Shanghai’s throughput growth.
Beginning 1 July 2020, the three-month pilot scheme will see containers that are meant to be shipped on THE Alliance’s Asia-US East Coast (EC1) service, being dropped off at an onshore yard and then handled by SIPG, instead of being trucked along the congested Donghai Bridge, which connects Yangshan port to Shanghai’s Pudong New Area.
The project is aimed at improving the business environment of Shanghai Port and reducing logistics costs, while also improving Shanghai Port in terms of business innovation and port development work in line with the construction of the Shanghai International Port Center and a free trade zone.
The system will alleviate bottlenecks on the Donghai Bridge and the accumulation of containers in the port area by rationing trailer entries into the port during quiet times.
In recent years, Yangshan port has seen increasing container shipments as Shanghai consolidates its position among container ports worldwide.
Last year, Yangshan port handled 19.8 million TEU, with its automated terminal accounting for 3.27 million TEU. Donghai Bridge is the only overland route to send containers to Yangshan Port and traffic will continue to increase. In future, the automated terminal’s handling capacity is expected to reach 6.3 million TEU.
Members of THE Alliance are Ocean Network Express, Hapag-Lloyd, Yang Ming Marine and HMM.
Martina Li
Asia Correspondent
