Pinglu Canal Launches Full-Scale Ship Testing

China’s Pinglu Canal, a landmark infrastructure project in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, officially launched full-scale ship testing on Wednesday, marking the final major examination before the waterway’s scheduled opening to navigation in September. A 5,000-ton empty test vessel departed from the Xinfu Water Comprehensive Service Area, initiating the first full-channel, all-vessel-type real-ship trial on the canal, according to Xinhua News.

A Milestone for a Century-Scale Project

The Pinglu Canal is a backbone project of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor and the first canal linking inland rivers to the sea coordinated at the national level since the founding of the People’s Republic of China. With construction progress now exceeding 98 percent, the project is entering its final sprint toward the September opening, as reported by CNR/CCTV News.

The canal stretches 134.2 kilometers from the Pingtang River estuary in Hengzhou, administered by Nanning, southward through Lingshan County’s Luwu town, following the Qinjiang River into the Beibu Gulf. Built to inland Class I waterway standards, it can accommodate vessels up to 5,000 tons, making it the highest-navigation-grade river-sea connecting canal in the world.

Comprehensive Testing Regime

The current trial deploys four representative vessels covering the 5,000-ton heavy-load, 5,000-ton empty, 3,000-ton heavy-load, and 1,000-ton heavy-load classes. The test route spans the Shaping River section, watershed section, Qin River main stream section, Qinzhou urban section, and estuary section, with crews conducting real-world assessments of three-hub double-line ship lock passage, curve meeting, same-direction overtaking, turning maneuvers, tidal berthing, and night navigation.

According to the Global Times, this is the first full-channel, all-vessel-type live-ship trial on the canal and the last test before the waterway fully opens to navigation in September. The trial will also test navigation under six types of high-risk adverse conditions, including hub water discharge, tributary flood convergence, and strong winds combined with large tides.

Advanced Technology and Safety Measures

Test vessels are equipped with BeiDou positioning, drone flow monitoring, mooring line tension sensors, and main engine condition collection equipment. These systems enable real-time collection of ship tracks, drift angles, roll angles, channel flow velocity, and ship-to-ship safety distances. The trial also includes full-line testing of 206 representative navigation marks for day/night visibility, light quality, and placement effectiveness.

To ensure safety, the Pinglu Canal construction management team has established a multi-unit coordination mechanism involving maritime, construction, and emergency response authorities. Space- and time-segmented water traffic control measures, emergency escort speedboats, and pre-verification of crew qualifications and vessel seaworthiness have been implemented.

Following the trial, the management team will compile real-ship seaworthiness test reports and navigation mark effectiveness test reports, develop navigation optimization recommendations and standardized routes, and define navigation control requirements for each section, providing the technical foundation for safe canal operations.

Strategic Significance for Southwest China

The canal’s strategic importance extends far beyond its engineering achievements. It cuts inland waterway distance to the sea by over 560 kilometers compared to the route via Guangzhou Port, providing the shortest, most economical, and most convenient water transport route from Southwest China to ASEAN markets.

Wan Zhe, chief expert at the Belt and Road Institute of Beijing Normal University, described the canal’s transformative impact: “The Pinglu Canal completely rewrites the logistics rules for goods from Southwest China going to sea. It turns a 500-600 kilometer detour into a direct route, changing transport time from weekly to daily delivery,” as reported by CCTV News.

Businesses are already positioning for the canal’s opening. Huang Yujie, general manager of Guangxi Wuchan Cold Chain Logistics Co, told the Global Times that water transport time from provincial capital Nanning to Qinzhou Port will take just one day, and fresh agricultural products exported to ASEAN member states can reach their destinations in just three days.

Engineering Marvel and Economic Engine

The project represents a total investment of approximately 72.719 billion yuan (about $10.78 billion). Its engineering achievements include three navigation hubs—Madao, Qishi, and Qingnian—designed as twin single-step 5,000-ton ship locks. The hubs feature world-record-setting water-saving technology, with Madao and Qishi using three-stage water-saving basin designs achieving 60 percent water savings, and Qingnian using mutual irrigation achieving 50 percent savings. Combined annual water savings exceed 1 billion cubic meters.

The canal’s earthworks total approximately 315 million cubic meters—three times that of the Three Gorges Project—making it China’s largest earthworks transportation project. The project also includes 104 bridges, 27 of which are cross-canal main bridges, and features China’s first full-lifecycle digital twin system for a major waterway project.

Economic Impact and Regional Development

The canal is projected to handle 95.5 million tons of cargo annually by 2035 and 180 million tons by 2050. It is expected to reduce comprehensive logistics costs for Southwest China goods by 18-30 percent, saving over 5 billion yuan annually in social transport costs. Container unit logistics costs are projected to drop 18-22 percent.

Lei Xiaohua, deputy director of the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies at the Guangxi Academy of Social Sciences, noted that “logistics expansion will drive industrial distribution and cultivate new types of services, which will directly benefit local residents.”

The canal’s impact is already visible across industries. Guangxi Xijiang Heavy Industry Co saw operating revenue increase 509.44 percent year-on-year in the first seven months of 2025, and shipbuilders are receiving orders for LNG-powered vessels that reduce CO2 emissions by 23 percent and sulfur emissions by 99 percent compared to diesel ships.

Community and Environmental Benefits

The project has delivered substantial community benefits, employing over 70,000 workers through work-relief programs with 2.429 billion yuan in wages paid. It has built 76.8 kilometers of community roads and 36 bridges, installed 37 kilometers of water supply pipelines benefiting 126 villages and 77,000 residents, and rebuilt or newly constructed 6 schools. Some 2,854 households (11,428 people) have been relocated and properly resettled.

Environmental measures include ecological channel relocation, wildlife-specific passageways, and mangrove relocation and restoration, with systematic ecological protection integrated throughout construction.

What’s Next

The full-scale ship testing represents the culmination of years of preparation. The canal achieved full water connection on June 3, 2026, and completed its first full-route patrol on August 7-8 using the patrol vessel Haixun 1003, as reported by the Global Times.

The planned September opening coincides with the annual China-ASEAN Expo in Nanning, underscoring the canal’s role in strengthening regional economic integration. As Guangxi Party Secretary Chen Gang emphasized at an August 3 special meeting, the goal is to ensure the canal opens with “water in the river, ships on the water, cargo in the ships, goods reaching all directions,” according to Guangxi News.

With the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor recording 517.23 billion yuan in imports and exports during the first half of 2026—up 13 percent year-on-year—the Pinglu Canal is poised to become a critical artery in China’s trade connectivity with Southeast Asia and beyond. The successful completion of these trials will determine whether the canal meets its ambitious September timeline and delivers on its promise to reshape the logistics landscape of Southwest China.