A vital maritime corridor connecting Taicang Port to Peru's Port of Chancay has entered regular operation, offering a new solution to global shipping capacity shortages for Chinese automakers.

On Sept 23, COSCO Shipping's vessel Green Paranagua arrived at Chancay Port carrying 2,445 Chinese vehicles. This followed the maiden voyage by the vessel Peng Bo a week earlier, which delivered 917 units in a successful manner and is now distributed across Peru.

The Green Paranagua vessel berths at Taicang Port. [Photo/WeChat account: tcfbgw]

The route utilizes an innovative "foldable frame for cars" system, allowing multipurpose pulp carriers to stack vehicles eight tiers deep in 48-foot frame boxes. This approach addresses the severe shortage of specialized roll-on/roll-off (Ro-Ro) vessels. It operates on a two-way model: carrying exported cars on the outward journey and returning loaded with pulp.

Vehicles packed into customized frame boxes are hoisted at Taicang Port for overseas shipment. [Photo/WeChat account: tcfbgw]

Between January and August this year, Taicang Port exported 62,000 cars using frame boxes, a year-on-year surge of 148 percent. As the primary auto export hub along the Yangtze River, Taicang exported close to 920,000 vehicles overall during the same period, up 80 percent year-on-year. Exports bound for Latin America reached over 200,000 units across 42 countries and regions.

This achievement stems from the sister-port agreement established in March 2025 between Suzhou Port, with Taicang as its primary area, and Chancay Port. Supported by local port authorities and COSCO Shipping Specialized Carriers, the two ports built a full-chain service system spanning technical support, port operations, ocean transport, and local distribution, strengthening trade ties across the Pacific.