Existing logistics infrastructure could help move cargo between inland China and overseas markets.
Singapore container shipping company Pacific International Lines (PIL) is part of a joint venture involved in developing and operating a logistics park in Nanning that could consolidate, store and distribute canal cargo.
CNA asked PIL whether it had received firm customer interest or cargo commitments, and whether it planned to introduce or adjust any services after the canal opened.
A PIL spokesperson described customer feedback as “encouraging”, but did not disclose any firm cargo commitments or specific service changes.
“We will continue to strengthen cooperation with ports, logistics partners and customers, and further enhance connectivity between southwest China, Qinzhou Port and PIL’s global network,” the spokesperson said.
At Qinzhou, where the Pinglu Canal meets the sea, Singapore-headquartered global port operator PSA International has investments in a container terminal, an adjacent railway depot and a digital port platform.
“Our container terminal, Beibu-Gulf International Container Terminal, is prepared to handle barges transiting the waterway,” Lim Chin Chuan, PSA International’s regional CEO for Northeast Asia, told CNA.
CUHK’s Kee said Qinzhou could focus on bulk cargo and nearby ASEAN markets, while larger hubs in Singapore, Guangdong and Hong Kong connect goods to markets farther afield in Europe, North America and elsewhere.
“Competition and cooperation will coexist,” he said.
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