Pinglu Canal Sets World Records as China Nears Completion
China’s Pinglu Canal, the first river-to-sea canal built since the founding of the People’s Republic in 1949, has achieved multiple world-first engineering feats as it entered a critical new phase on June 3, 2026. The Madao and Qishi hubs began water filling, marking the full water commissioning of the 134.2-kilometer waterway and signaling that the project is on track for navigation trials in September 2026, according to CCTV News.
A Historic Waterway Takes Shape
The Pinglu Canal connects the Xijiang River in the Pearl River basin directly to the Beibu Gulf, creating a strategic trade corridor linking western China to ASEAN markets. Starting at Pingtangjiangkou in Hengzhou City (Nanning) and passing through the Qinjiang River to the Gulf of Tonkin, the canal is designed to China’s highest navigation grade — Class I inland waterway — capable of handling vessels up to 5,000 tons.
With a total investment of 72.7 billion yuan (approximately US$10.2 billion), construction began in August 2022 and is scheduled for full completion by December 2026. The project involves the excavation of approximately 315 million cubic meters of earth and rock — roughly three times the volume of the Three Gorges Project, making it the largest earthwork transportation project in China’s history.
Engineering Marvels and World Records
The canal overcomes a 65-meter elevation drop from start to finish through three cascade hubs — Madao, Qishi, and Qingnian — which function as “water elevators” for ships. These hubs have set multiple world records:
Largest Water-Saving Ship Lock: The Madao Hub features a maximum water level difference of 29.6 meters — approximately 10 stories high — making it the world’s largest water-saving ship lock. Its lock chamber measures 300 meters long by 34 meters wide, with each chamber area equivalent to 1.5 standard football fields. Two chambers can simultaneously accommodate 12 vessels of 5,000 tons.
Fastest Valve System: The 70-ton valves at both Madao and Qishi hubs open in just one minute and close in 30 seconds, setting a world record for valve opening and closing speed on water-saving ship locks.
World-First Stacked Water-Saving Basin Design: Both Madao and Qishi hubs employ a three-stage water-saving basin stacked arrangement — high, medium, and low water-saving basins arranged in a stepped configuration. This world-first design significantly reduces water consumption per lock cycle. To support the immense weight, the Madao Hub uses 1,302 reinforced concrete columns, while the Qishi Hub uses 1,152.
As Guangming Net reported, the canal is also China’s highest navigation-grade waterway, capable of directly handling 5,000-ton vessels.
Strategic and Economic Significance
The Pinglu Canal is a backbone project of China’s New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, a key logistics route linking western China to global markets. Currently, goods from southwestern China destined for Southeast Asia must travel eastward via the Pearl River Delta (Guangzhou/Hong Kong) and then south, adding more than 560 kilometers to the journey. The canal eliminates this detour entirely.
According to expert estimates cited by ECNS.cn, once the canal opens, logistics costs for exports from southwestern China could fall by 18% to 30%, saving more than 5 billion yuan ($690 million) annually. Industries expected to benefit include automobiles, machinery, new energy products, electronic equipment, minerals, and agricultural products.
A New Gateway for China-ASEAN Trade
The canal’s strategic importance extends beyond logistics efficiency. By providing a direct outlet to the South China Sea from western China, it reduces dependence on the Malacca Strait route for some trade and positions Guangxi as a gateway between China and ASEAN. The Beibu Gulf Port is expected to evolve from a standalone cargo terminal into a major international logistics hub.
As the largest canal project in China since the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal — built over 1,400 years ago during the Sui Dynasty — the Pinglu Canal represents a transformative infrastructure achievement. With navigation trials planned for September 2026 and full completion by year’s end, the waterway is poised to reshape trade flows between China’s southwestern hinterland and Southeast Asia for decades to come.
What to Watch For
As the canal enters its final construction phase, key developments to monitor include the September 2026 navigation trials, the structuring of tolls and fees for canal usage, and the environmental monitoring programs being implemented for the canal’s ecosystem. The project also sets a precedent for other mega-canal initiatives, including Cambodia’s proposed Funan Techo Canal and other Belt and Road Initiative waterway projects across Southeast Asia.