The group manages the port complex of Ningbo and Zhoushan, which together comprise the fourth busiest container port in the world.
Speaking at the recent Maritime Silk Road Port International Cooperation Forum in Ningbo, IAPH president Santiago Garcia Milà gave a keynote address and met with Ni Chenggang, the vice gm of Ningbo Zhoushan Port Group to conclude the membership arrangement.
“We are delighted to welcome Ningbo Zhoushan Port Group as a member of our organisation”, said Garcia Milà, “With the ever-growing impact of the Chinese Belt and Road strategy, we look forward to working together to boost trade and stimulate economic growth across Asia and beyond.”
With a total cargo throughput of 1bn tons in 2017, Ningbo and Zhoushan make up the largest port complex in the world. The complex is also part of the Maritime Silk Road and has the largest deep-water facilities in China.
The port’s maritime connections have increased substantially after China’s Belt and Road initiative. In addition, the port launched sea-rail intermodal connections, with trains providing services to more than thirty cities in China as well as countries in central and northern Asia and eastern Europe.
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The container handling volume of its sea-rail transport is expected to surpass 400,000 teu this year, a 60% increase compared to 2017. Ningbo-Zhoushan handled over 10m teu from countries along the Belt and Road in 2017, up 16% compared to 2016.
“With the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port Group joining IAPH we are considerably strengthening our membership base in China”, concluded Garcia Milà. “This ties in very well with next year’s IAPH World Ports Conference, which we are organising in Guangzhou, at the historical origins of the Silk Road.”
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