Guangxi Transport Department Approves Operation Plans for Ship Locks of Three Major Hubs on Pinglu Canal

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 1, the Transport Department of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region officially approved the operation plans for the ship locks of the three major hubs—Madao, Qishi, and Qingnian—on the Pinglu Canal. The approved plans apply to the operation and management of the ship locks at the three hubs, specifying arrangements for lock operation demands, joint dispatch, equipment operation, maintenance, safety control, and emergency response.

The operation plans were developed based on the actual progress of project construction, on-site measured data, current management systems, and regional navigation characteristics. Among them, the three hubs—Madao, Qishi, and Qingnian—undertake the tasks of water level connection between different sections of the canal and the passage of ships through the locks, serving as major components of the Pinglu Canal navigation hub project. The plans also make arrangements for operating conditions such as navigation safety, flood control and drainage, and water resource utilization.

Prior to this approval, the Pinglu Canal had already completed multiple engineering and operational verifications before navigation. On August 12, the Pinglu Canal initiated real-ship trials, in which four representative vessels—a 5,000-ton loaded vessel, a 5,000-ton empty vessel, a 3,000-ton loaded vessel, and a 1,000-ton loaded vessel—participated in testing and successively passed through the ship locks of the Madao, Qishi, and Qingnian hubs. On August 26, the full-route cargo ship seaworthiness trial was completed, with test items including continuous lock passage, meeting in curved channels, and overtaking in the same direction.

From August 27 to 28, the Pinglu Canal completed the completion acceptance, covering works such as the waterway, hubs, and maritime service areas, and the engineering entity quality of the hub ship locks and metal structure equipment passed acceptance. Following the approval of the ship lock operation plans, the Transport Department of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region will urge the ship lock operation units to improve supporting management systems and operation and maintenance implementation rules in accordance with the approved requirements. The Pinglu Canal is scheduled to open to navigation in September 2026.