The Pinglu Canal is about to be opened to navigation, and the backbone project of the New Western Land-Sea Corridor enters the sprint stage

On September 16, the Pinglu Canal, the first national-level canal project to connect the river and the sea since the founding of the People's Republic of China, will be opened to navigation.

Construction of the Pinglu Canal started on August 28, 2022, with a total length of 134.2 kilometers, starting from the mouth of the Pingtang River in Xijin Reservoir Area, Hengzhou City, Nanning in the north, passing through Luwu Town, Lingshan County, Qinzhou in the south, and leading directly to the Beibu Gulf along the Qinjiang River. Over more than four years, more than 20,000 builders used their wisdom and sweat to open up a new channel connecting the river and the sea in Bagui. Now, the backbone project of this new western land-sea corridor is about to be opened to navigation. How is the preparation for the entire line progressing?

CCTV reporter Chen Xi: At the ship lock site at the Pinglu Canal horse road hub. After joint water commissioning, actual ship testing, handover acceptance and all-element drills, the first batch of navigation ships will soon pass through the lock, heading south to the Beibu Gulf and heading north to the Xijiang shipping trunk line.

The Pinglu Canal 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, along the Qinjiang River in the south, and enters the Beibu Gulf. It has a total length of 134.2 kilometers. It is constructed as a Class I inland waterway and can be navigable for 5,000-ton ships.

In order to solve the problem of water level difference, the three major hubs of Ma Dao, Qishi and Qingnian built from top to bottom of the canal have all completed joint debugging with water. The seaworthiness test of the actual ship for the entire voyage has been completed, and the anchorage, service area, navigation aid facilities, etc. all meet the navigation conditions.

Cheng Yaofei, commander of the Pinglu Canal Project Construction Headquarters: We have simulated and verified all the working conditions that may be encountered after the navigation is opened. The equipment, dispatching process, and emergency response are all closed loop, the hardware and software are all in place, and the conditions for navigation are met across the board. After it was opened to navigation, the focus of work shifted from construction to operation.

Specifically, by sector, at present, the four major sectors of waterways, hubs, command and dispatch, and maritime law enforcement are all ready. In terms of waterways, all channel dredging has been completed and passed acceptance inspection.

In terms of hubs, the ship lock equipment of the three major hubs has completed multiple rounds of water joint debugging tests. The water delivery, opening and closing, and water level adjustment equipment have all been verified. The supporting navigation marks, approach channels, berthing areas, anchorages and other hardware facilities have all been constructed and debugged in place to meet the needs of ships docking and waiting at the locks.

In terms of command and dispatch, the Pinglu Canal Command and Dispatch Center located in the Youth Hub is the smart dispatch center for the navigation operations of the three major hubs. It supports each other with the command and dispatch center located in Nanning, and integrates and operates the river-sea integrated dispatch platform, ship lock remote centralized control system, etc. Currently, the two dispatch centers are ready for navigation.

In terms of maritime law enforcement support, the Maritime Safety Department has completed on-site inspections of the Pinglu Canal navigation environment and made dynamic assessments of hydrological and meteorological conditions. Currently, there are 570 ships registered with the Maritime Safety Administration that are qualified for Pinglu Canal navigation. Pinglu Canal pilots must hold Pinglu Canal route endorsements. Since the endorsement process opened on June 22, 681 crew members have obtained qualifications.

He Changhai, deputy captain of the Marine Affairs Department of Qinzhou Port District: Navigation is about to begin and ships are about to pass through the lock. We check the ships that plan to enter and exit one by one. The dimensions, draft, and port entry and exit reports of the ships must not be missed to ensure that the ships pass through the lock safely.

(Headquarters reporters Chen Xi, Liao Mi, Xu Zhenqi, Sun Xiaoyan and Wang Haidong)