The Pinglu Canal is completed and opened to navigation, creating the shortest economic sea channel from southwest to ASEAN.

China News Service, Qinzhou, Guangxi, September 16 (Reporter Yang Chen) The Pinglu Canal, the backbone project of the New Land-Sea Corridor in Western China, was completed and opened to navigation on the 16th, opening up a major channel to the sea with the shortest distance, the most economical and most convenient transportation distance from southwestern China to ASEAN.

Construction of the Pinglu Canal started on August 28, 2022, with a total investment of approximately 72.7 billion yuan (the same below) and a total length of 134.2 kilometers. It starts from the mouth of the Pingtang River in Xijin Reservoir Area, Hengzhou City, Nanning in the north, passes through Luwu Town, Lingshan County, Qinzhou in the south, and leads directly to the Beibu Gulf along the Qin River.

On September 16, the Pinglu Canal opening ceremony was held at the Pinglu Canal Horse Road Junction in Qinzhou, Guangxi. Photo by China News Service reporter Yang Chen

This canal, which has the highest level of navigation in China, was built according to the Class I standard for inland rivers and can be navigable for 5,000-ton ships. Three major cascade hubs, including Horse Road, Qishi and Youth, have been built across the entire line. The project has created four "best in the world": the world's strongest canal navigation capacity, the world's fastest ship lock navigation speed, the world's highest water-saving lock drop, and the world's largest inland water-saving lock.

After the Pinglu Canal is opened to navigation, goods from southwest China can go to sea through the canal, shortening the inland voyage by more than 560 kilometers compared with traditional routes. The voyage to major ASEAN ports is significantly shortened, and comprehensive logistics costs are reduced by 18% to 30%. It can save society more than 5 billion yuan in transportation costs every year.

In August 2026, aerial photography of the Pinglu Canal was taken. (Photo courtesy of Pinglu Canal Group)

"This canal is not only a logistics channel, but may also become a lever to connect the industrial chains between western China and ASEAN, transforming geographical 'proximity' into 'closeness' of industrial cooperation, and promoting both parties from commodity exchange to nested cooperation in the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain." said Yu Hong, a senior researcher at the Institute of East Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore.

The navigation ceremony was held at the Pinglu Canal Horse Road Hub in Qinzhou, and four linkage scenes were set up in Nanning Port, Qinzhou Port, Xinfu Water Comprehensive Service Area, and Qinzhou Water Comprehensive Service Area, and the four water passenger routes were opened simultaneously. (over)