At 10:38 a.m. on April 15, the Guangfu Train for sea-rail combined transportation launched for the first time. Loaded with 92 TEUs of photovoltaic export goods, the No. 81942 train departed from Yiwu West Station to Ningbo-Zhoushan Port, where these goods will be loaded for shipping overseas. After 20 days, the products will arrive in Karachi, Pakistan. The train is a customized service for sea-rail intermodal transport, jointly developed by Yiwu Landport Group, Yiwu’s railway department, and Yiwu’s port and shipping department for key customers.

The Yiwu-based JinkoSolar Co., Ltd. has the most advanced production base of JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd., one of the leading companies of photovoltaic modules in the world. When a delegation from Yiwu Landport Group visited JinkoSolar, they learned that although JinkoSolar has increased its production capacity in 2021 as export orders surged, the company lacked containers for transportation. Yiwu’s sea-rail combined transportation is helping the company ease this problem.

Since the beginning of 2021, Yiwu Landport Group and the railway department have kept close contact with Ningbo-Zhoushan Port and actively expanded the sea-rail intermodal transport business. Taking advantage of Zhejiang’s development of the optoelectronics industry, the increase of JinkoSolar’s production capacity, and strong export demand, Yiwu Landport Group and the railway department have actively promoted their services of sea-rail intermodal transport. In this way, they extend their services and business to inland areas. They also help to increase the competitiveness of “made in China” products in international trade by providing customers with tailored services, reduced logistics costs, and delivery efficiency.

In order to improve the operation of trains for sea-rail combined transportation, the railway department and Yiwu Landport Group cooperate with Ningbo-Zhoushan Port and operators of sea-rail intermodal transport platforms to establish a regular communication and coordination mechanism. They solve problems in a timely manner by communicating in WeChat groups, making phone calls, and holding meetings. They also achieve seamless connection and close cooperation in cargo source allocation, transportation organization, container loading and unloading, and more, which has promoted the rapid development of sea-rail intermodal transport. In the first quarter of this year, Yiwu launched 112 trains for sea-rail combined transportation, delivering 10,286 TEUs. The business volume increased by 218% year over year, showing strong growth.

Yiwu Landport Group and the railway department will maintain their innovative spirit and development momentum, and continue to give full play to their advantages of large-scale transportation and abundant logistics resources. Benefiting from the advantages of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port as the world’s first-class hub port and the largest port for sea-rail intermodal transport in Southern China, the two parties will enhance transportation capacity, optimize transportation organization, and develop Yiwu’s transportation with both the China Railway Express and sea-rail intermodal transport. (By Wu Fengyu, translated by Jin Haiqiong, edited by Kendra Fiddler)