A DELEGATION FROM THE ABIDJAN PORT AUTHORITY VISITED THE PORT OF GUANGZHOU

Visite de travail Monday 18 September 2023

 

The Managing Director of the Abidjan Port Authority, Hien SIE, and his counterpart from the Port of Guangzhou, Sun XIUQING, signed a twinning agreement between the two ports in Guangzhou on Monday 5 June 2023.

As a part of the signing of this cooperation agreement, the Chinese partner offered its guests a tour of its port facilities.

At the Port Center exhibition hall where the guided tour began, carefully preserved archive images gave a broad overview of the evolution of the port of Guangzhou (Port de Canton for French speakers); the only port in the world that has been able to operate without interruption for 2000 years, as the cradle of the Maritime Silk Road of ancient China.

As one of China’s major commercial ports, the port of Guangzhou emerged under the Qin and Han dynasties, developed under the Tang, prospered under the Ming and Qing, and continues to flourish today. As far back as the early Han dynasty, long-distance shipping lines served the Persian Gulf. The port has thus contributed to the development and prosperity of the city of Guangzhou, with which it is closely linked.

After this first stage, we embark for the Port of Guangzhou, which we reach after an hour's drive.

Under the responsibility of Mrs Yang LI, Director of External Relations, Mr. Hien SIE and his delegation will visit a modern port on the Pearl River estuary.

Ranked 5th among Chinese ports and 6th in the world, with a cargo throughput in 2022 of up to 655.92 tonnes and a container throughput peaking at 24.87 million TEUs, the port of Guangzhou has 727 berths of all kinds, including 113 berths for ships over 10,000 tonnes.

It is the largest container port for China's inland trade and the main port for the maritime route to Africa and the Mediterranean.

The expected annual handling capacity of its cargo berths is 374 million tonnes; the expected annual container handling capacity is 15.64 million TEUs and the expected annual passenger handling capacity is 38.19 million passengers.

The Port of Guangzhou is also one of the Chinese government's designated vehicle import ports. With the Xinsha Ro-Ro Terminal and the Nansha Automated Terminal (equipped with Artificial Intelligence and 5G), it is the largest hub port for Ro-Ro vehicle operations in southern China.

In 2022, the annual throughput of commercial vehicles reached 1.57 million units in the port of Guangzhou, ranking it among the top national ports, where foreign trade vehicles reached 50,000 units.

On the environmental front, the Port of Guangzhou is classified as a "green port" by the Chinese government, with more than 400 berths equipped with shore power supply.

In March 2021, the first purely electric cruise (using green energy and technology) was officially put into service.

It should be noted that Guangzhou is the capital of Guangdong province. Its proximity to Hong Kong and Macao has made it the largest and most flourishing commercial and industrial centre in southern China. The famous Guangzhou Import-Export Fair is held there twice a year. The Abidjan Port Authority took part in this fair, which was held on 2, 3 and 4 June 2023, with a stand in the Côte d'Ivoire pavilion.