Goods from Sichuan can now be consolidated via railway to Nanning Port, transferred to the Beibu Gulf waters via the Pinglu Canal, and shipped directly to Southeast Asian markets. As a key project of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor(ILSTC) in western China and the first nationally coordinated river-sea canal since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the navigation of the Pinglu Canal has opened a new southbound sea access corridor for Sichuan.

An aerial photo taken on Aug. 19, 2026, shows the Qingnian Hub of the Pinglu Canal and its surrounding terrain

On Sept. 4, river-rail-sea intermodal freight trains departed separately from Chengdu and Zigong, carrying chemical products, chemical fibers, and other goods. The cargo was transported by rail to the Liujing Port Area of Nanning Port in Guangxi for loading, then sailed through the Pinglu Canal to exit via Beibu Gulf ports, reaching Can Tho Port in Vietnam directly.

This new route reduces rail transport distance by 150 to 200 kilometers; while maintaining stable transit times, logistics costs per twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) can be reduced by approximately 1,000 yuan.

This model achieves "one container throughout the journey without transloading", allowing customs clearance to be completed at the Liujing Port Area of Nanning Port in a one-stop service. It also enables seamless connection with river-sea direct vessels on the Pinglu Canal, effectively addressing pain points of traditional export logistics such as multiple transshipments, frequent loading and unloading, and cumbersome procedures, thereby simultaneously improving both service quality and efficiency along the corridor.

Containers dispatched from Chengdu have arrived at the Liujing Port Area in Nanning

"Following the successful inaugural shipment, we will study and launch regular service products for this route," said Zhang Huan, head of the Operations Management Department of the Land-Sea New Corridor Company under the Provincial Port Investment Group. He added that in the future, Sichuan's exports to Vietnam, Thailand, and Malaysia, including chemical products, solar photovoltaic panels, and auto parts, can all reach major Southeast Asian ports via river-rail-sea intermodal transport.

On Sept. 4, the first "Sichuan-Pinglu Canal-Vietnam" river-rail-sea multimodal transport train departed from Chengdu

To date, the province has operated more than 6,600 freight trains along the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor in western China, with southbound foreign trade volume exceeding 18 billion yuan. Nearly 400 inbound and outbound routes have been opened, covering 15 cities and prefectures within the province and connecting 170 cities and ports across 84 countries and regions worldwide. For the first 8 months in 2026, Sichuan's import and export volume with ASEAN reached 160.63 billion yuan, up 7.7% year-on-year, accounting for 22% of the province's total foreign trade.

【本篇文字部分内容由 AI 辅助写作，特此声明。Please note: the text in this article was created with the help of AI.】