A volume of more than 600,000 tons of coal passes the Jiangsu section of the Yangtze every day, according to Jiangsu Maritime Safety Authorities. From 10 January, local maritime officials started a Green Channel for Coal and Oil, a procedure designed to speed up anchorage applications, the co-ordination of vessels entering and departing ports, and loading and unloading operations. The measure was taken to ensure that all the major coal-fired power plants along the Yangtze had enough stocks leading up to the Chinese New Year.

In another recent development, the largest ever coal-carrying vessel to enter the Yangtze anchored at the terminal of Taicang Power Plant. It was carrying 56,000 tons of coal. It is not clear where the coal came from.

According to China Daily, China’s coal imports more than tripled in 2009 to 130m tons. The increase was attributed to the economic stimulus package which pushed up demand for high quality coking coal used in the steel, cement and chemical industries.