CHANG JIANG ZHI YAO berths at Qingdao port.

On Oct 10, oil tanker CHANG JIANG ZHI YAO berthed at the third-phase oil wharf of Qingdao port. With 300,000 tons weight and 21.4 meters draft, it has been the biggest ship with the deepest draft berthed at the Port of Qingdao, which marks that the port has the capability of admitting 300,000-ton oil tankers for navigation.

Investing more than 300 million yuan ($47.9 million), the Port of Qingdao has built its deepwater channel in just four years. The channel is 10 kilometers long and 440 meters wide with a draft of 22.5 meters. Since the first oil tanker with a draft of more than 15 meters went through the main channel on May 8, 47 deep-draft ships have passed the channel.

The length, width and draft of CHANG JIANG ZHI YAO are 330, 60 and 21.4 meters respectively, and it is 26 meters longer than China’s first aircraft carrier Liaoning. Pilot station that formulated navigation and anchorage planning cooperates with business department of Qingdao port to arrange tugboats to ensure safety of large ships in the deepwater channel.

Edited by Tom McGregor, Li Zhaoyu and Li Xiaoliang