Construction on the Chengdu railway container center station is expected to start soon, said Jin Dazhong, director of logistics for the Chengdu Municipal Committee of Communication, according to yesterday’s 21st Century Business Herald.

With an investment of two billion yuan ($286.39 million) from China United International Rail Container Co Ltd, the station will have a total cargo throughput of 2.2 or 2.5 million twentyfoot equivalent units (TEUs) upon completion.

“It will be the largest railway container center station in Asia,” said Jin.

The station will open direct lines from Chengdu, Southwest China’s Sichuan Province, to Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Qingdao, Lianyungang and Tianjin ports, and the transportation time will be shortened from 5 or 6 days to only 48 hours.

Covering an area of 2.140 mu (142.67 ha), the station is the largest of 18 container logistics projects planned by China United International Rail Container Co Ltd.

Chengdu aims to build itself into a logistics hub in western China by 2010, and 2,700 mu more land has been planned for the container logistics zone, with a designed annual handing capability of two million TEUs.

(Chinadaily.com.cn April 24, 2008)