National energy strategic corridor "upgraded" for operation: Xinjiang coal to Hebei rail-water intermodal transport corridor officially launched

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 13, the first 10,000-ton special train carrying Hami coal under the "Xinjiang coal to Hebei" program arrived at the Jingtang Port Area of Tangshan Port, Hebei Port Group, marking the official launch and operation of this rail-water intermodal transport corridor for outbound Xinjiang coal.

On September 7, the official website of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) released a notice: recently, the Operations Bureau of the NDRC organized the Development and Reform Commission of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China State Railway Group, and Urumqi Railway Bureau to hold a special meeting to analyze the situation of outbound Xinjiang coal transport and make arrangements for stabilizing Xinjiang coal output, strengthening transport capacity guarantees, and increasing the scale of outbound Xinjiang coal transport.

China is a net importer of coal and also a major coal producer in the world.

Xinjiang is rich in energy resources, with predicted total coal resources of approximately 2.19 trillion tons, accounting for 40.6% of the country's total coal resources, ranking first nationwide. The cumulative identified coal resource reserves are 455.9 billion tons, accounting for one quarter of the national total. In 2025, coal output across Xinjiang reached 553 million tons, doubling from 2020, with growth rate ranking first among major coal-producing provinces and regions nationwide for four consecutive years.

Outbound Xinjiang coal transport is an important component of the national energy strategic corridor.

Previously, the NDRC and the National Energy Administration jointly issued the "15th Five-Year Plan for the Development of the Coal Industry," listing Xinjiang's coal supply guarantee as one of the country's five major bases, and emphasizing that the Xinjiang coal supply guarantee base should coordinate the "Xinjiang electricity transmission outward" and "Xinjiang coal transport outward" corridors, the construction of large-scale wind and solar bases, and the layout of modern coal chemical projects, with focus on areas such as Zhundong, Tuha, and Ili, rationally arranging the pace of development, and enhancing the level of intensive and large-scale development.

At present, outbound Xinjiang coal transport is highly dependent on railway trunk corridors, with the Urumqi Bureau and Lanzhou Bureau, the two major railway networks, undertaking more than 80% of the country's outbound Xinjiang coal transport tasks.

Data from the Statistics Bureau of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region show that during the "13th Five-Year Plan" period, "outbound Xinjiang coal transport" totaled 69.39 million tons. Since the "14th Five-Year Plan," it has continued to grow, reaching 43.87 million tons in 2021, exceeding 88 million tons in 2022, exceeding 100 million tons in 2023, and reaching 140 million tons in 2024.

In 2025, the volume of "outbound Xinjiang coal transport" reached 144 million tons, with an average annual growth rate of 33.7%, covering 19 provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities across the country.

The newly operational rail-water intermodal transport corridor for outbound Xinjiang coal transports Xinjiang coal into Shanxi, assembles 10,000-ton trains, then transfers to the Jingtang Port Area of Tangshan Port, and finally transports Xinjiang coal to the coastal areas of East China and South China via waterway. It can shorten the transport time of Xinjiang coal to Hebei via the railway freight corridor from the previous 28 days round trip to about 10 days, greatly enhancing the capacity for outbound Xinjiang coal transport.

The NDRC stated that the next step will be to strengthen overall coordination, promptly study and resolve prominent issues in outbound Xinjiang coal transport, and give play to the role of Xinjiang coal in ensuring the national coal supply.