HAIKOU /China/, January 21. /TASS/. Yangpu deep-water port in the northwest of Hainan Island has already registered 30 international vessels. According to the Hainan Daily newspaper, the key harbor of the southernmost Chinese province has become the third largest in the country.

The total tonnage of registered maritime vehicles that fall into this category has thus increased more than eightfold to 5.5 million tons since 2018, when Chinese authorities announced the establishment of a pilot zone and free trade port in Hainan. Yangpu has attracted significant attention from many companies since new regulations were published in 2021, providing incentives for vessels registered in the province.

The possibility of duty-free refueling at the port has been of particular interest to logistics firms: over the past 12 months Hainan has provided the service about 420 times, shipping 217,500 tons of fuel and lubricants. Over the year, these figures increased by 158% and 113%, respectively.

According to the Hainan Maritime Affairs Office, the provincial government has also greatly tightened control measures to ensure safe navigation. In the past year, the province has detected and corrected some 100 systemic problems. More than 9.1 thousand ship inspections have been conducted, which have revealed about 3.8 thousand serious deficiencies. The authorities have cracked down on illegal shipping and other maritime violations during a special campaign spanning over the past three years.

According to the provincial transportation department, Yangpu handled 1.3 million containers in 2021, increasing the corresponding cargo turnover by 30%.

According to the Chinese government's plan, Hainan will soon become an important global logistics center, with trade routes from Europe, the Middle East and Southeast Asia passing through it. In this regard, the provincial authorities are actively developing the transport infrastructure of the island, building new airport terminals, high-speed highways and modern storage areas. Yangpu will play a particularly significant role in maintaining regional communications, which, with the active participation of other local harbors, will become a key link in the field of international shipping. According to the target, by 2025, this port should receive at least 5 million containers annually, and its cargo turnover will reach 130 million tons.