A ship docks at a terminal of the Liuheng port area in Zhoushan, Zhejiang province. [Photo/wifizs.cn]

The Liuheng port area of Ningbo Zhoushan Port is seeing steady growth in cargo throughput, which is expected to surpass 108 million metric tons this year with a 5.8 percent increase from last year.

The bulk carrier Ning Teng 1 recently loaded 5,000 tons of iron ore at the Wugang ore transfer terminal in the Liuheng port area in just over two hours. This marks the vessel's sixth operation at the port area this year.

Thanks to continuous improvements in the river-sea intermodal transport system, the entire process from loading to unloading in the port area can now be completed in as little as four days, which is significantly cheaper and faster.

The Wugang ore transfer terminal has been leveraging the river-sea intermodal transport system to transport iron ore more efficiently. From January to November this year, the terminal handled over 31.83 million tons of iron ore.

The Wugang ore transfer terminal, a key part of the Liuheng port area, has cumulatively handled over 300 million tons of iron ore since its launch in 2013, playing a crucial role in growing the port area's cargo handling capacity.