China officially opened the 134.2-kilometer Pinglu Canal on Wednesday, establishing a 72.7 billion yuan maritime shortcut connecting inland Guangxi to the Beibu Gulf. The nationally planned waterway aims to slash regional logistics costs by up to 30 percent and deepen trade ties with Southeast Asia.
China opened a major new canal on Wednesday, giving its landlocked southwest a shortcut to the coast and overseas markets, particularly those in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN, the country’s largest trading partner). Built at a cost of 72.7 billion yuan, the 134.2-kilometer Pinglu Canal runs from Nanning, the capital of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, straight to the Beibu Gulf.
The waterway represents the first river-to-sea canal project planned and coordinated at the national level since the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949. For decades, the nation’s industrial development anchored heavily on eastern coastal powerhouses like Guangdong, Fujian, and Shanghai, leaving western and southwestern provinces facing steeper obstacles and higher expenses to move goods to international seaports. The new canal directly brought the sea
to Nanning.
Engineering the 134.2-Kilometer Waterway Across Guangxi
Construction on the massive infrastructure corridor began on August 28, 2022, backed by a total investment of approximately 72.7 billion yuan, roughly equivalent to $10.75 billion. Builders widened, deepened, and straightened existing rivers for most of the route, while cutting through dry land and rugged mountainous terrain elsewhere.
The engineering team had to overcome a severe 65-meter water level difference along the path. Workers constructed three navigation hubs, each outfitted with twin-line ship locks, to safely raise and lower vessels along the canal. The channel is designed to accommodate cargo ships of up to 5,000 tonnes, or metric tons.
Environmental mitigation measures accompanied the excavation work. More than 98 percent of the approximately 315 million cubic meters of excavated earth and rock was reused to create fertile farmland and handle restoration. Builders also installed a fish passage stretching over 480 meters alongside a dedicated wildlife crossing designed for land animals such as leopard cats and squirrels.
Cutting Logistics Costs and Reshaping Regional Trade
The economic impact centers on distance and efficiency. By providing a direct water route to the Beibu Gulf, the canal cuts more than 560 kilometers from the inland waterway journey between southwest China and the sea compared with traditional shipping lanes through Guangdong Province.
State-run reporting indicates the corridor will reduce logistics costs by 18 to 30 percent, saving more than 5 billion yuan, or about USD 1.4 billion in annual transportation expenses. Coal, ores, grains, new-energy materials, and automobile components originating in the southwest now possess a much smoother passage to global markets.
The completion and operation of this monumental project represent not only a significant milestone in the history of China’s transport infrastructure development but also a strategic move to advance high-standard opening-up, foster a new development pattern, and jointly promote the high-quality Belt and Road cooperation in the new era.
Global Times editorial, via en.people.cn
Bilateral commerce between China and ASEAN has surged. Trade surpassed USD one trillion for the first time last year. During the first seven months of 2026 alone, bilateral trade reached USD 744.41 billion, marking a 24.7 percent year-on-year increase and accounting for 21.8 percent of China’s total foreign trade during the period.
Integrating the New Canal Into Asian Multimodal Corridors
The canal operates as an anchor within the wider New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, tying together rail networks, inland waterways, and maritime shipping lines. Vietnamese media coverage characterized the infrastructure asset as a potential new logistics lifeline linking Southwest China directly with Southeast Asia. Meanwhile, analysts at a Singaporean think tank observed that the project could reinforce ASEAN’s position inside global supply chains by supporting the region’s manufacturing efficiency.
Analysts emphasize that the opening arrives during the first year of China’s 15th Five-Year Plan, which runs from 2026 through 2030, signaling a long-term commitment to reshaping regional trade geography.
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