China launched the second phase construction of the oil wharf which will be able to accommodate ship of 250,000 dwt.

The second phase includes installation of five oil tanks each storing 100,000 cubic meters of oil and some auxiliary equipment.

Currently, the Beilun Harbor's 250,000-dwt wharf, also in Ningbo, is the largest oil berth in China with an annual handling capacity of 20 million tons.

42b Yuan Injected in 9th 5-Year Plan

China has reportedly invested 42 billion yuan in coastal port construction during the ninth Five-Year Plan period, mainly the construction of the transportation system for coal, containers and imported iron ores, especially the construction of the container transportation system, and has thus initially alleviated the bottleneck restriction exerted by port transportation on the development of the national economy.

It is reported that China has focused on the establishment of a transportation system for coal, crude oil, iron ores and grain. Meanwhile, it also has built a group of coal unloading docks along the coast of east and south China.

In the light of the needs for the development of iron and steel enterprises, China has expanded Beilun ore dock, the 200,000-tonnage dock of Ningbo Port, and completed Qingdao ore port. Besides, it has also constructed Zhoushan Majishan ore unloading dock.

Ningbo to Build World's Largest Bridge

Ningbo, a coastal city in East China's Zhejiang Province, will build a sea-crossing bridge to shorten its traffic distance to the metropolis in an effort to improve its business environment. The 54-kilometre-long bridge, which will run from the city's Cixi to Zhapu in Jiaxing, is expected to be the world's longest.

It will cost 12 billion yuan (US$1.45 billion) in investment. Of the investment, 70 percent will be collected from local enterprises, and the rest will come from the province's revenues.

( December 24, 2001)