China's inland navigable waterways lengthen to 123,000 kilometres

CHINA has attached increasing importance to the development of inland waterways during the recent 30 years with the length of navigable channels reaching 123,000 kilometres.

There are currently 26,000 river terminals, 160,000 river shipping vessels with an aggregate deadweight tonnage capacity of 65 million tonnes. In 2009, China posted national river cargo volume at 2.6 billion tonnes and a cargo turnover at 700 billion tonnes per kilometre.

The Yangtze River has always been the core of the river shipping development. In August, China State Council approved that the lower reaches of the river will undergo dredging to raise capacity, so that smooth traffic flow in the middle and upper reaches can be secured and enhanced.

Improvements in inland navigation will support the development of the riverside industry. Half of China's production of automobiles, 35 per cent of steel, 28 per cent of processed crude oil, one third of the high-tech industry value come from the riverside areas. Eighty per cent of iron ore and two thirds of the foreign trade cargo from and to the river regions are transported on inland waterways.
(Source:www.schednet.com)