Fast-tracking development across the world

China's high-speed railway products, tech and standards receive international acclaim

Steel rails used in high-speed railway tracks have become a key pillar of China's high-tech exports.

In late November, China shipped its long-length steel rails to Indonesia, for use in the widely anticipated Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, or HSR, project.

The shipment marked a significant milestone in China's exports of a full range of products and services related to HSR construction and operations, which are known as one of the country's calling cards.

Made by Pangang Group Co Ltd in Sichuan province, each rail is 100 meters long, making China one of the few countries in the world that can export long-length steel rails.

From Sichuan, they were first transported to Fangchenggang Port in the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region by railway through specially adjusted carriers, before being cut into 50-meter-long rail pieces for the sea journey.

Experts said China's HSR-related technologies and standards are now widely recognized across the world. In the past, Chinese steel companies often had to produce and export products as per the standards of the United States and Europe. But now, more and more foreign users are accepting Chinese standards.

They attributed China's achievements to outstanding equipment innovation and world-class manufacturing capabilities. Yicai, a Shanghai-based Chinese media group, reported that Sun Zhang, a professor with the Institute of Rail Transit of Tongji University in Shanghai, attributed the confidence in China's HSR to independent innovation.

Guo Hua, deputy head of Panzhihua Steel & Vanadium Co Ltd, a subsidiary of Pangang Group, said: "It's the first HSR project outside China to adopt a complete set of Chinese HSR technology and equipment in accordance with Chinese standards.

"Chinese people always treat others with sincerity, and we are earnest to provide the best products for the Jakarta-Bandung HSR project. Long-length rails have been widely used for more than a decade in China."

Xu Xiangchun, information director and analyst with Mysteel, an iron and steel consultancy, said: "The longer a rail is, the more complicated it is to produce it, due to the higher precision requirements for product specifications."