A ro-ro cargo ship containing 750 cars on board set sail from Chongqing's Guoyuan Port on Sept 1. The departure marked the commencement of operations for Chongqing Guoyuan Ro-ro Wharf Company, according to the Liangjiang administrative committee.

Chongqing Guoyuan Ro-ro Wharf Company plans to construct a comprehensive logistics service platform to support Guoyuan Port's cargo transportation.

Last month, Guoyuan Ro-ro Whaf Company cooperated with local logistics companies to finish the warehouse work of 750 cars in 22 hours. Statistics show that, the cost of ro-ro ship transport is only one third of that of land transport.

The operation of Guoyuan Ro-ro Wharf Company is also expected to promote the functions and professional competence of Guoyuan Port. It will also play a significant role in promoting Chongqing's automobile logistics industry.

In recent years, Liangjiang has been working on promoting the construction of its transportation infrastructure. Guoyuan Port currently owns 16 berths with an annual capacity of 300 million tons. The construction of the Water-Road Combined Transport project has made a big progress in the area. According to Huang Ji, vice general manager of the Chongqing Gangwu Logistics Group, freight trains between Guoyuan port and Guizhou province have begun operation; trains from Yunnan province are expected to start operating this year. The opening of the route will enable cargo from West China to be delivered to different countries and regions via Guoyuan port.

Guoyuan port is a combined water, railway and road transport hub. A senior staff member from the Liangjiang Administrative Committee said that the port has been constructed to lay a good transportation foundation for trade between Chongqing and other countries.

Statistics from the Chongqing Administration of Customs show that the total volume of Liangjiang's foreign trade reached 67.62 billion yuan ($10.89 billion) in the first quarter of 2015, accounting for 48.10 percent of Chongqing's total foreign trade volume.

Guoyuan Port in Liangjiang New Area, in Southwest China's Chongqing municipality [Photo/liangjiang.gov.cn]

Edited by Jacob Hooson