Jining, a key hub on the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal in Shandong province, is transforming its ancient waterway into a modern global trade artery by integrating advanced technologies with ecofriendly practices.

Jining's port cargo throughput surpassed 100 million metric tons in 2025, making it the first inland port in northern China to achieve this economic milestone, according to the Shandong Development and Reform Commission.

At the city's Longgong Port, automated rail cranes efficiently manage containers, while unmanned trucks equipped with Beidou navigation and intelligent sensing technologies shuttle between stacks with precision.

"Previously, moving the same volume required about 60 truck drivers working in three shifts. Now, just three workers in the control center can manage the 16 unmanned trucks to complete the work," said Gu Qiang, head of the port's dispatching and command center, highlighting the dramatic increase in efficiency.

Longgong Port has built a transport system that integrates canal, railway and sea routes.

"The port's proximity to railway lines, less than 1 kilometer away, is a distinct advantage," said Gu.

The cost of transporting coal from Shaanxi province via rail to Longgong Port and then by waterway to the Yangtze River Delta is only one-third that of pure rail transport and one-seventh of road transport.

With the railway connection, the port's reach has expanded to include Gansu, Shaanxi and Henan provinces, driving a substantial surge in throughput through combined rail-water transport.

The port's annual container throughput exceeded 380,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) last year, marking a 69 percent year-on-year increase.

Strategically located on the middle stretch of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, Jining connects the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region with the Yangtze River Delta. The city has developed 360 kilometers of waterways and 103 berths capable of handling 1,000-ton vessels.

It operates 30 container shipping routes, with a logistics network covering 152 cities nationwide.

"Foreign trade was a standout growth area in 2025," Gu said, noting the creation of a one-stop export channel from Longgong Port directly to Qingdao Port for international shipping, saving about 10 percent in logistics costs per container.

Industrial upgrades are driving development across the entire chain.

At Shandong Xinneng Shipbuilding Co Ltd, industrial robots and laser cutters work on building pure-electric powered inland container vessels.

"From welding and painting to outfitting, the intelligent production line ensures a fully green and standardized process," said Zhang Bo, team leader of the manufacturing department's processing team.

The company has secured orders for over 180 new-energy vessels during past two years, exporting new-energy vessels to countries including Vietnam and Tanzania.

"Jining will accelerate the construction of commercial logistics, multimodal transport, port-industry clusters, green shipbuilding and shipping services to build a northern inland shipping center," said Chen Peng, director of the Jining transportation bureau.