Two container barge models that will operate on both river and sea have been approved by a panel of experts at a meeting in Wuhan on 13 November. The barges were assessed on the basis of their technical capability and suitability for use on the Yangtze River and the short ocean stretch from Shanghai to Yangshan deepwater terminal.
The China Classification Society organised the assessment on behalf of the Ministry of Transport to evaluate the models in terms of four factors: safety, environmental protection, building cost and aesthetics. Mass production of the new model has now been given the go-ahead. The process is part of the government drive to standardise vessels operating along the Yangtze.
One of the models, an open-top container barge designed by the Wuhan-based Yangtze Ship Design Institute, is 122.8 metres long and 18.8 metres wide with a draught of 4.2 metres. Capable of carrying 424 teu, the new model is designed to sail directly from the river to Yangshan where containers are moved onto large ocean-going vessels. At the moment, a typical container barge on the Yangtze has a capacity of 150-200 teu; upon reaching Waigaoqiao terminal in Shanghai, the containers are transhipped onto a shuttle service for Yangshan, where they are then loaded onto large ocean-going vessels destined for Europe and America.
The other model, also designed by the Yangtze Ship Design Institute, is a combo tug/barge with a combined length of 129.29m and a maximum capacity of 360 teu. It will be used on the shuttle service between Waigaoqiao and Yangshan terminals; indeed, several such vessels are already in operation along the route. However, shippers complain that services are insufficient and that containers often miss the scheduled service to Yangshan as a result.