Xinxin's "container" glory, where does the increment come from - behind the annual container throughput of Ningbo Zhoushan Port breaking 40 million TEUs for the first time

Lifting! "On December 2nd, in Meishan Port Area of Zhoushan Port in Ningbo, the 40 millionth standard container of this year steadily lifted and slowly landed on the" COSCO Shipping Sagittarius "ship. It will cross the ocean and sail towards Europe.
At this moment, it marks the first time that the annual container throughput of Ningbo Zhoushan Port has exceeded 40 million TEUs, becoming the third port in the world to join the ranks of "40 million". From surpassing "20 million" in 2015 to now surpassing "40 million", it has had the fastest growth rate and the largest increment among the top five ports in the world in the past 10 years.
In the shipping industry, it is often said that the size of a port depends on its throughput; Whether the port is strong or not depends on the containers. The annual cargo throughput of Ningbo Zhoushan Port has ranked first in the world for 16 consecutive years, and its position as the "world's largest port" is stable; Although the container business started late, its development momentum is remarkable.
Currently, the global trade and shipping landscape is full of variables. Behind the continuous rise of this Eastern port, how can foreign trade and port shipping mutually empower each other? Looking towards the future, where is its new increase?
The 'Global South' generates incremental growth
40 million standard containers are connected end-to-end and can orbit the Earth's equator more than 6 times, equivalent to the total number of containers in South America in a year. In the current environment, this number reflects the resilience of China's foreign trade.
Wang Tongren, Chairman of Ningbo Lianyang Shipping Co., Ltd., has a deep understanding of this. As a freight forwarding company, the company has served nearly 300000 TEUs to be shipped from Ningbo Zhoushan Port this year. In his view, the global trade landscape is undergoing profound changes, and facing the fluctuation of demand in traditional European and American markets, enterprises are accelerating their development towards market diversification and high-end products.
In the vast developing countries of the 'Global South', including the Middle East, Central and South America, and Africa, there is a growing demand for daily necessities such as small household appliances and miscellaneous items.
The Southeast Asian market, represented by RCEP member countries such as Indonesia and Thailand, has become an important market for China's engineering contracting due to infrastructure construction needs, and the export of infrastructure materials and equipment has also joined the "40 million" list.
"The pattern of foreign trade that was highly dependent on Europe and the United States in the past is changing. Emerging markets such as RCEP member countries and the the Belt and Road countries have become new growth points due to their large population base and rapid economic development. ”Comrade Wang said.
The data from Ningbo Customs confirms this trend. Ten years ago, the main trading partners of Ningbo Port were developed countries; In the first 10 months of this year, ASEAN has become the largest contributor to growth, with a contribution rate of 37.6% to import and export growth.
The growth in the Middle East region is particularly significant, for example, the import and export volume of the Iraqi market increased by 33.8% year-on-year.
The product structure is also quietly changing. In Wang's company's business, the three major categories of steel structure infrastructure, household appliances and daily necessities, and energy storage equipment have seen significant growth. "The most representative is the breakthrough in the new energy field, where some companies are shifting from producing photovoltaic equipment to supporting products such as energy storage cabinets
According to data from Ningbo Customs, from January to October this year, mechanical and electrical products remained the main export force, accounting for 54% of the total export value; As a traditional advantageous industry, textile and clothing also maintained a year-on-year growth of 11.4%.
In the past 10 years, the "new content" of exported goods at Ningbo Port has increased. From traditional goods such as textiles, clothing, and shoes playing a leading role, to the current impressive performance of the "new three", among them, in the first ten months of this year, the export growth rates of electric vehicles and lithium batteries reached as high as 265.3% and 136.9%, respectively.
The sharp transformation of foreign trade enterprises provides the core engine for the leap of Ningbo Zhoushan Port.
Serve at the doorstep
How to build a "strong" port? The answer to Ningbo Zhoushan Port is to lay the channel at the doorstep of enterprises.
Internally, we have strengthened the layout of inland and waterless ports, "said Tao Chengbo, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the Provincial Seaport Group. For example, the number of sea rail intermodal routes has increased to 111, radiating to 69 prefecture level cities in 16 provinces across the country.
As of the end of November, the sea rail intermodal transportation business volume of Ningbo Zhoushan Port has exceeded last year's total, with foreign trade container volume ranking first among all ports in the country.
Behind the numbers is the story of enterprises reducing costs and increasing efficiency. Taking a leading chemical fiber enterprise in Zhejiang as an example, after setting up a production base in Xuzhou, the company faced logistics difficulties: the cost of direct trucking was too high, and shipping from nearby ports had fewer shipping schedules and longer voyages.
Ningbo Zhoushan Port collaborates with freight forwarders to create the Xinyi Inland River Branch Line for enterprises, connecting the Haihe River intermodal transportation channel. From one ship running back and forth, to now 13 ships running in a loop, we ensure that customers have ships to load goods every day, "said Wang. As of November, the company has exported nearly 10000 TEUs through this channel, and the foreign trade export volume of the base has increased by 76.7% year-on-year.
In the hinterland of Chongqing, container exports are transported by Yangtze River waterway to coastal ports, which takes 10 to 15 days for one-way transportation, while road transportation is costly. The Chongqing sea rail intermodal transportation opened by Ningbo Zhoushan Port has achieved 48 hour direct delivery, which also promotes logistics cost reduction and efficiency improvement.
Externally, we actively strengthen our global air route network, "said Tao Chengbo. Currently, the total number of air routes in Hong Kong remains stable at over 300, connecting more than 600 ports in over 200 countries and regions worldwide, and ranking second in the world in terms of port connectivity index.
Overseas services can also directly reach customers' doorstep. Ningbo Zhoushan Port has established 11 logistics nodes worldwide, innovatively launching a "full logistics" model by setting up subsidiaries, offices, and building "overseas warehouses", connecting the entire chain of foreign trade products from factory shipments to overseas warehousing.
The speed record is constantly being broken: the "China Europe Express" from Ningbo Zhoushan Port to Wilhelmshaven Port took only 26 days, which is more than ten days shorter than the traditional method; The "China Europe Arctic Express" extends its route to the Arctic Ocean for the first time, taking only about 20 days, becoming the fastest direct route from the Yangtze River Delta region to Europe.
The model of "hub+channel+network" has made Ningbo Zhoushan Port increasingly an indispensable node in global trade.
Incremental future is promising
Entering the Yiwu (Suxi) International Hub Port, which was put into operation in June this year, the reporter saw the source of new growth.
Yiwu and Zhejiang Zhongxi goods converge here and are transported by railway to Ningbo Zhoushan Port, ensuring boarding. It is expected that by the end of the year, this new artery will transport 90000 TEUs.
The freight rate remains stable throughout the year, with direct access to the port within 3 hours and a one-time inspection and customs clearance throughout the entire process, "said Zhao Jianmin, General Manager of Zhejiang Port Yiwu Hub Port Co., Ltd. Currently, there are 6 sea rail trains running steadily every day, and the peak transportation capacity can double. The growth in container volume is expected in the future.
How to explore new increments? The relevant person in charge of the Ocean Port Department of the Provincial Department of Marine Economy told reporters that it is necessary to build "hard support" for infrastructure and strengthen the "soft power" of the business environment.
Hard support "is the expansion of physical space. Currently, Hong Kong has over 2.1 million ton berths, among which the number of extra large and large-scale deep-water berths is leading globally.
In the future, based on the two major "ten million container level" ports of Chuanshan and Meishan, we will also promote the construction of projects such as Jintang and Liuheng in accordance with the layout of "one port, two cores, and twenty zones", and ultimately form five clusters of ten million container level container berths. A wider dock, deeper waterway, and denser station network will lay the material foundation for container volume upgrading.
Soft power lies in optimizing services and efficiency. Time is cost, convenience is competitiveness. Since last year, the "Zhejiang e-Port Connect" model has enabled inland enterprises to complete export procedures in one stop at their doorstep, achieving "direct loading upon arrival". This convenience needs to be expanded, aiming to cover more than 28 stations inside and outside the province by 2026.
The acceleration of processes such as the "one order system" for sea rail intermodal transportation, the on-time cost reduction plan for containers, the reduction of non productive time spent in berthing, and the "new three types" of "direct trains" for going abroad require collaborative innovation from multiple departments.
In addition, the future competition will be a competition between shipping services and the overall environment. For example, the cost of LNG refueling for ships at Ningbo Zhoushan Port has been continuously decreasing, and it has been ranked among the top four major refueling ports in the world for two consecutive years.
Next, Zhejiang plans to build three shipping service clusters with a single scale exceeding 50 billion yuan, gathering high-end elements such as finance, insurance, law, and brokerage to attract more ships, goods, and people to come.
The core competitiveness of ports lies not only in their scale, but also in their ability to cope with uncertainty, "said Zhen Hong, Director of the Academic Committee of the Shanghai International Shipping Research Center
No matter how the situation changes, when ports are no longer limited to cargo transfer stations, but become important hubs for global shipping resource allocation and value creation, the driving force for growth will be more abundant.