Maritime Silk Road | Guangzhou Port: Sailing to the Sea for 2000 Years

Guangzhou Port is located at the mouth of the Pearl River and the center of the Pearl River Delta, bordering the South China Sea, adjacent to Hong Kong and Macau, where the Dongjiang, Xijiang and Beijiang rivers flow into the sea. Guangzhou is a world-famous oriental port on the Maritime Silk Road, which is "the treasure of the vassals and the prosperity of Wu and Yue".

As an extremely rare cross node along the Maritime Silk Road, Guangzhou, with its 2000?years of evolution course and?ongoing?prosperity,?has played an irreplaceable role in international trade activities and cultural exchanges based on the Maritime Silk Road.

History of Guangzhou Port

Guangzhou port has a long history. As early as 2000 years ago, during the Qin and Han dynasties, Guangzhou was an important port for China's foreign trade and was one of the starting points of the ancient "Maritime Silk Road".?During the Tang and Song dynasties?over 1300 years ago, there were six regular routes between China and the Persian Gulf region, all of which were concentrated in Guangzhou. The "Guangzhou Passage" was one of the most famous ones, sailing from Guangzhou, crossing the South China Sea, the Indian Ocean, the Persian Gulf, East Africa and Europe, through more than 100 countries and regions, with a total length of 140,000 km, which was the longest international route in the world at that time. Since then, Guangzhou became the center of overseas transportation and the first major port for foreign trade. By the Qing Dynasty, foreign investors built a number of wharves and warehouses on both sides of the South?River and local propriety owners in Guangzhou along the East River Changdi, and Guangzhou became the only port for foreign trade and the largest port for foreign trade in China.

Harbor Areas and Quay Berths in Guangzhou Port

The harbor?areas?of Guangzhou Port composes of?four areas, including Inner Port, Huangpu, Xinsha and Nansha, and the Pearl River Estuary anchorage. It has a number of advanced facilities of large container, coal, grain, petroleum and chemical specialized deep-water terminals, as well as the largest ro-ro ship terminal in South China. By 2012, Guangzhou Port has 516 berths (including 23 buoys) of various types of production, including 66 berths of over 10,000 tons,?and 88 anchorages, with a maximum anchoring capacity of 300,000 tons.

Competitive advantages of Guangzhou Port

Excellent geographical location

Guangzhou Port is located at the mouth of the Pearl River and the center of the Pearl River Delta with the most active?China's export-oriented economy, bordering the South China Sea, adjacent to Hong Kong and Macau, where the Dongjiang, Xijiang and Beijiang rivers flow into the sea. Through the water network of the Pearl River Delta, Guangzhou Port is connected with all major cities in the Pearl River Delta as well as Hong Kong and Macau, and is linked to the southwest region of China by the Xijiang River and to the coastal ports of China and the?ports of the?world through the Lingdingyang Estuary seaway.

Good Natural Conditions

Guangzhou Port is located in the northern edge of the Pearl River Delta, with a dense network of rivers, abundant water and less sand.?Evergreen is throughout the four seasons, with a pleasant climate.?The coastline resources are abundant and the conditions for port construction are good.

Well established infrastructure

It has a number of advanced facilities of large container, coal, grain, petroleum and chemical specialized deep-water terminals, as well as the largest ro-ro ship terminal in South China. By 2012, Guangzhou Port has 516 berths (including 23 buoys) of various types of production, including 66 berths of over 10,000 tons, and?88 anchorages, with a maximum anchoring capacity of 300,000 tons.

Superior collection and distribution conditions

Guangzhou is a transportation hub in South China, with developed waterways, railways, highways, and airline?transportation. It has formed a three-dimensional transportation network?of sea, land, and air,?which?radiates Southeast Asia and connects various parts of the world.

Especially in the Pearl River Delta, where the river channels are crisscrossing, the shipping resources are superior, and it has the unique shipping conditions of "direct access to rivers and seas,?and?connecting Hong Kong and Macau". Through the implementation of the first, second, and third phases of the sea route and the channel widening project, the bottom elevation of the sea route at Guangzhou Port is -13.0 m, and the effective width is 255 m, meeting the two-way tidal navigation requirements of 50,000-ton ships. At present, the navigable depth of the channel from the the Pearl River Estuary to Nansha Port Area has been widened to - 17 m, which can meet the requirements of one-way navigation without tide for 100,000-ton container ships, one-way navigation with tide for 120,000-ton bulk cargo ships, and two-way navigation without tide for 50,000-ton ships to enter and leave Nansha Port Area.

Trade in Guangzhou Port

Guangzhou Port is the largest comprehensive port in South China, with international shipping access to more than 300 ports in more than 80 countries and regions around the world. Every spring and autumn, the China Import and Export Fair is held in Guangzhou. Export commodities are mainly sold to 154 countries and regions, and the main export commodities are agricultural and sideline products, light textile products, heavy industrial products, industrial products, etc. The main import commodities are machinery, steels, non-ferrous metals, photographic supplies, instruments, light textile, chemical raw materials, medicine and health care equipment. In 2022, Guangzhou port completed cargo throughput of 655.92 million tons, up 0.7% year-on-year, ranking No. 5 in China.

Guangzhou?Port?has been qualified for bonded bunkering since December 2021, and the volume of bunkering at the port in 2021 is nearly 380,000 tons, an increase of more than 75% year-on-year.?Ships can be bunkered with “add and go”?pattern, which saves the ships' waiting time at the anchorage. E-PORTS can provide you with services for bunkering in Guangzhou port. If you need to bunker at the anchorage, please contact E-PORTS's Star Agent in advance. We will arrange and declare for you in advance.?Reasonable arrangement can save your ship waiting time at the anchorage?and reduce operating cost.