The container ship Nan Hui 66 docked at Gaolan Port in Zhuhai on Jan 8 to complete its maiden voyage from Yangpu Port in Haikou, the capital of Hainan Province. This is the first container liner route since the advent of the Hainan Free Trade Port.

The initial Zhuhai-Haikou trips are made every four days and this will increase to two sailings each week. Last June, China released a master plan to give Hainan Island a globally influential, high-level free trade port by the middle of the century.

Nan Hui 66 at Gaolan Port [Photo provided to Guanhai App]

Shanghai PanAsia Shipping launched the Nan Hui on Dec 28 in collaboration with Zhuhai and Haikou ports. Shanghai PanAsia is a subsidiary of China COSCO Shipping.

The route shortens to 24 hours travel time between the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and Hainan FTP. The linkage is expected to increase industrial integration and economic development. Furthermore, the vessel will transport import-export commodities, and this will reduce logistics cost for foreign trade and make local products more competitive.

Zhuhai Port Holdings Group has opened multiple shipping routes in cooperation with Shanghai PanAsia Shipping under an agreement signed in December 2017.

Next the group will cooperate more with shipping and third-party logistics enterprises to have additional routes. Zhuhai Port has a prime location on the major estuary of the Xijiang River and policy advantages due to the Greater Bay Area.