First Pinglu Canal River Container Ship Completes Loading at Qinzhou Port

The container vessel Huihai 5688 completed cargo operations at Qinzhou Port in Guangxi on September 10, marking the first time an inland river container ship arriving via the Pinglu Canal handled cargo at a Beibu Gulf seaport, according to China News Service. Loaded with 200 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of potash fertilizer and other goods, the vessel departed for Nanning Port's Liujing operational area, testing direct waterborne connections between the inland Xijiang river system and coastal shipping terminals.

The successful berthing, loading, and departure of the first inland river container vessel at Qinzhou Port confirms the practical feasibility of direct river-to-seaport cargo operations via the Pinglu Canal, testing logistical integration between inland Guangxi and maritime sea routes.

On September 10, the inland container vessel Huihai 5688 completed cargo loading operations at Berth No. 1 of the Dalanping South operational area at Qinzhou Port, part of Guangxi's Beibu Gulf Port network, before setting sail. According to a report by China News Service citing Beibu Gulf Port Co., Ltd., this marks the first time that a Beibu Gulf seaport has serviced a container vessel originating from the inland Xijiang River basin via the Pinglu Canal. The vessel took on 200 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of cargo, including potash fertilizer, at Qinzhou Port. Following the completion of stevedoring, the ship began its northbound journey upstream, traveling back through the Pinglu Canal directly toward the Liujing operational area of Nanning Port. Chinese state media described the operation as a key milestone linking river and ocean freight, characterizing it as the start of an interconnected transport network between the Beibu Gulf and the Xijiang river basin. The canal is intended to provide landlocked western provinces with a direct, shortened maritime gateway to Southeast Asia and international sea routes, bypassing longer transit routes through the Pearl River Delta in Guangdong. The voyage serves as an operational test for cargo handling procedures, berth adaptability, and waterborne transit between inland waterways and deep-water coastal terminals. Moving containerized bulk agricultural inputs like potash fertilizer directly from maritime terminals to inland agricultural processing centers highlights the industrial logistics use case envisioned by regional planners. While the trial run demonstrates the feasibility of inland-coastal ship movement through the canal infrastructure, broader commercial adoption will depend on operational efficiency. Key variables include transit speeds through navigation locks, water depth management along the canal route, and freight rate competitiveness compared to established rail and river-sea transshipment corridors.