“From Chancay to Shanghai” has become a popular slogan in Peru as the Chancay Port, a flagship project of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), held a grand opening ceremony on Thursday.
The $1.3 billion mega project is set to revolutionize regional trade by accommodating the world’s largest cargo ships and significantly reducing shipping times. The first phase of the project will reduce the sea shipping time from Peru to China to 23 days, cutting logistics costs by at least 20 percent.
The new port features four berths with a maximum depth of 17.8 meters, capable of hosting ultra-large container ships with a capacity of 18,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). With a designed annual throughput capacity of one million TEUs in the near term and 1.5 million TEUs in the long term, Chancay Port is poised to become a key hub for trade between Latin America and Asia.
Chinese President Xi Jinping said in his signed article, published Thursday in the Peruvian media outlet El Peruano, that the Chancay Port project is expected to generate $4.5 billion in yearly revenues for Peru and create over 8,000 direct jobs.
President Xi and his Peruvian counterpart Dina Boluarte attended the opening ceremony of Chancay Port via video link on Thursday.
“From Chancay to Shanghai, what we are witnessing is not only the root and blossom of the Belt and Road Initiative in Peru, but also the birth of a new gateway that connects land and sea, Asia and Latin America,” said President Xi in his address during the opening ceremony.
President Xi arrived earlier Thursday to pay a state visit to Peru and attend the 31st APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting. This is his sixth visit to the continent since 2013.
Reference(s):
From Chancay to Shanghai: Transforming Latin America's trade future
cgtn.com
