In south China's Guangxi region, the long-envisioned integration of river and sea transport is on the verge of becoming a tangible reality. The Pinglu Canal, the nation's first waterway project of its kind to be coordinated at the national level since the founding of the People's Republic of China, connecting inland rivers to the ocean, is slated to open in September. Stretching 134.2 kilometers, this canal has drawn widespread attention since construction commenced. Lei Xiaohua, deputy director of the Southeast Asia Research Institute at the Guangxi Academy of Social Sciences, believes its completion will allow global partners to further tap into China's developmental opportunities. This will be achieved by enabling smoother logistics for foreign goods entering the vast Chinese market, bolstering regional connectivity to expedite trade and investment, and deepening integration between China, ASEAN, and the world. As a model project embodying innovation, green principles, and smart technology, the Pinglu Canal is poised to inject fresh momentum into the economies of China and its emerging-market partners.

The century-old aspiration embodied by this monumental project begins at Jiangkou Street, Pingtang Village, Xinfu Town, Hengzhou City, Nanning – the canal's starting point. The scenery paints a classic Chinese landscape: emerald hills mirrored in the river's calm water, with an inland cargo vessel, heavy-laden, drifting unhurriedly downstream. During a recent visit, Global Times reporters encountered several middle-aged men who had driven to a scenic overlook by the water. "We're here for the Pinglu Canal!" they replied, when asked about their purpose. A waterway yet to carry its first ship has already become a momentous occasion for many, with curious visitors steadily increasing.

Sun Guoqi, a villager from Pingtang, a former fisherman, has sensed the budding tourism opportunity and started a small catering business from his home. "More tourists are coming, so my wife, a good cook, decided we should try this. Now we serve several tables each weekend, earning an extra thousand yuan a month!" The area was once a vital salt-trading post along the Xijiang River system. However, in the 1960s, the construction of the Xijin Hydropower Station submerged the old village, bringing its bustling salt trade to an end. Now, the canal's arrival is breathing new life into the community.

The Pinglu Canal originates at Pingtang River Estuary, winds through Luwu Town in Lingshan County, Qinzhou, and follows the Qinjiang River into the Beibu Gulf. It covers a total length of 134.2 kilometers with an elevation drop of 65 meters. As a pivotal project of the New Western Land-Sea Corridor and one of China's major undertakings during the 14th Five-Year Plan period, it represents an investment of over 70 billion yuan and is designed to accommodate 5,000-ton vessels. Transit via the canal will shorten the inland river journey by approximately 560 kilometers compared to the route through Guangzhou Port, establishing it as the shortest, most economical, and most convenient access to the sea for China's southwest. This "project of the century" boasts several records in terms of construction scale. According to staff at the Pinglu Canal Group, the 52-month construction period involved excavating over 300 million cubic meters of earth and rock – nearly three times the volume of the Three Gorges Project. Massive dredgers like the "Tianjing" participated in the construction, and the project features three new cascade hubs – Madau, Qishi, and Qingnian – with a combined concrete volume of about 5.84 million cubic meters, enough to fill more than 2,300 standard swimming pools. The Madau hub set a world record for daily concrete pouring volume during its construction, and it is also the world's largest inland water-saving ship lock. Each of its work gates opens in just one minute and closes in thirty seconds. To conserve precious freshwater resources, water-saving basins have been constructed at both the Madau and Qishi hubs, enabling water recycling and using roughly 60% less water than conventional locks. From the Madau hub, reporters witnessed idyllic scenery with green mountains and slow-turning wind turbines, alongside banners with slogans like "Pinglu Commando," a testament to the builders' dedication.

With the canal's imminent opening, the deepening development of the New Western Land-Sea Corridor, and the implementation of the China-ASEAN FTA 3.0, Guangxi's maritime economy is set to embrace unprecedented opportunities. Madau hub marks the watershed between the Xijiang and Qinjiang river systems. He Junhui, head of the Engineering Management and Investment Development Department at Pinglu Canal Group, pointed to an old photo taken before construction began. "This was a narrow mountain path between two peaks, surrounded by rice paddies and sugarcane. We cut a 10-kilometer channel to divert water, linking the Xijiang and Qinjiang systems," he said. "Goods from Nanning no longer need to travel east to Guangzhou to reach the sea; the route south to Qinzhou is now open." The vision of using Qinzhou as a key port to shorten the distance to the sea for southwestern provinces dates back over a century. Since the founding of the PRC, multiple studies, surveys, and research efforts have been conducted on the project. The waterway that has carried hopes for a century is finally about to go into operation. Some liken the Pinglu Canal to the Panama Canal or China's ancient Lingqu Canal. Responding to this analogy, He Junhui said, "Every canal answers the call of its era. The Lingqu solved the problem of integrating the Lingnan region with the Central Plains, bringing prosperity and stability. The Pinglu Canal addresses the southwest's access to the sea and will similarly foster economic and social prosperity. Though technologies differ, the purpose is the same – the Chinese people's persistent endeavor to control and harness water has never ceased."

The advantages are stark. "广西嵘兴中科公司," as Qin Yubin from the company told reporters, acquired a shipyard along the canal in 2014 and converted it into a paper mill. Initially unaware of the canal plans, the entire company was thrilled when construction was officially announced in 2022. "The Pinglu Canal has become our opening line in client meetings – a true selling point for us," Qin said. Currently, a third of the company's raw materials are imported, and with a truck carrying 20 tons versus a barge carrying 4,000 tons, Qin expects logistics costs to drop by about 40% after the canal opens, potentially doubling their exports. The company even plans to build its own dock at the old shipyard site, envisioning a "front port, back factory" model. "We intend to pass on savings to our Southeast Asian customers, sharing the opportunities the canal presents." After the canal opens, vessels can travel from Qinzhou Port all the way north to Nanning, Guigang, and Liuzhou, with even more distant cities like Baise accessible via ship lifts. Yunnan's Funing Port is also expected to connect. "This will provide a smooth logistics corridor for the entire southwest. We estimate a shipping volume of around 5 million tons this year, potentially surging to 40 million tons next year," said He Junhui.

In the Liujing Industrial Park in Hengzhou, a new-energy vessel manufacturing base is under rapid construction, focusing on pure electric, methanol, and hydrogen-powered ships with an annual capacity of about 70 vessels. "The Xijiang 'golden waterway' has flowed eastward for millennia, leaving Guangxi landlocked and disconnected from the sea for too long. As a business owner investing here, I see not just a waterway but a major industrial artery. Liujing is transforming from an inland river port into a hub for river-sea combined transport, from a detour of thousands of miles to a direct route to the ocean," said Hu Binsheng, deputy general manager of Qin's Group Guangxi Yuanzhouli Marine Technology Development Co., Ltd. Hu emphasized that the canal factored heavily in their location choice, carrying a weight of over 80% in their decision. "Water transport costs about 10 yuan per ton from Liujing to Qinzhou, compared to a historical low of 30 yuan to Guangzhou, and is only one-fifth the cost of road transport. The logic of industrial layout is set to be rewritten – port-centric industries will naturally gravitate towards the canal corridor. Our ambition isn't just to build a shipyard, but to develop standard ship designs, charging and swapping solutions, and smart shipping systems tailored for the canal." Seizing the opportunity, the city of Guigang along the Xijiang recently launched a "Thousand-Ships Plan" aimed at cultivating over 1,000 Guigang-registered vessels, totaling over 3 million tons of deadweight, by the canal's second anniversary in September 2028. Upstream, in the Liujing Industrial Park, leading companies in papermaking, energy, building materials, and chemicals – including industry giants like 太阳纸业 and 比亚迪 – have already established operations, with many expanding their facilities. This has created new job opportunities. Huang Heyun, who just started working this year, found a job as a laboratory technician in Hengzhou, near her hometown. She works for 广西智亮新材料股份有限公司, a battery materials recycling firm with 200 employees, already benefiting from convenient river transport. "There will be more factories along the canal, and more factories mean more jobs!" she said.

The canal's impact extends beyond cargo, touching the lives and aspirations of people across ASEAN. Officials from several ASEAN nations have visited the construction site, impressed by the swift progress of a project of this magnitude. According to Vietnamese Consul in Nanning, Su Yuli, the Pinglu Canal, upon completion, will synergize with other components of the New Western Land-Sea Corridor to deepen economic and trade cooperation between China and ASEAN, particularly with Vietnam. Vietnam exports significant quantities of agricultural products like fruit, rice, coffee, and seafood to China annually. Su highlighted logistics and industrial chain coordination as initial beneficiaries. "The Pinglu Canal will create an additional transport route for Vietnam-China trade, allowing more goods to reach China's inland markets." He also noted the canal offers an alternative to sometimes congested land routes. The canal's opening coincides with the 23rd China-ASEAN Expo (CAEXPO), and ASEAN businesses are eager to leverage the new waterway. Su Yuli anticipates strong participation of ASEAN agricultural companies at the expo and hopes their products will flow into China through this new channel. Singaporean businessman and chairman of 广西新中产业投资有限公司 and the China-ASEAN Characteristic Commodities Hub, Zhao Haiyan, also serves as chief representative of the CAEXPO Secretariat's Singapore liaison office. She expressed excitement among Singaporean traders about the canal and its promise of renewed trade growth. "Previously, rail-sea intermodal transport sped up exports for western China, and now the canal adds the missing river-sea link, creating a three-dimensional hub for Guangxi," Zhao said. "Whether Singaporean companies are shipping ASEAN products to western China or routing western Chinese manufactured goods globally via Singapore, they will enjoy more efficient and stable supply chains. This 'channel dividend' will not only smooth trade but also enhance Singapore's value as a regional transshipment and trade hub." She added, "The canal will truly bring southwest China and ASEAN closer. Lower logistics costs will lead to more dynamic trade, interactions, and cultural exchanges. The canal delivers more than goods – it connects people." Chai Weicai, senior vice president at Thailand's Kasikornbank, told reporters that with overland routes and the Lancang-Mekong shipping playing significant roles, the Pinglu Canal will act as a powerful accelerant for regional trade. The connection between Thailand's Laem Chabang Port and Qinzhou Port via the canal could unlock new export shipping opportunities, creating a win-win situation and strengthening the close economic ties between China and ASEAN. Lei Xiaohua further noted that the canal will accelerate the agglomeration of logistics and talent in the Beibu Gulf region, unlocking development potential in western China and boosting commerce with ASEAN. Bulk commodities with lower time-sensitivity, such as aluminum, pulp, and agricultural products, are likely to reap early benefits. Huang Dongri, a distinguished research fellow at the Regional Country Studies Center of 广西民族师范学院, drew a parallel with the China-Laos Railway. He argued that while the railway focuses on rapid, all-weather freight, primarily serving Laos, Thailand, and Myanmar, the Pinglu Canal is designed for high-volume, low-cost, low-energy river-sea transport suited for bulk goods, intermediate industrial products, agricultural produce, and large equipment, serving maritime nations like Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore. "The railway solves the problem of speed and connectivity, while the canal addresses high capacity and low cost. They complement each other." Huang also highlighted the canal's profound impact on industrial clusters, embedding southwest China more deeply into cross-border supply chains. "This will solidify the pattern of China exporting intermediate goods and ASEAN handling final assembly, positioning the southwest as a vital base for this cross-border collaboration." He predicted the canal could also spawn new tourism sectors like canal cruises and border tours, adding new avenues for people-to-people exchanges. As September approaches, this century-defining waterway is poised to set sail, connecting the west of China with ASEAN and the world.