BEIJING, Nov. 16, 2024 -- "From Chancay to Shanghai" has become a popular slogan in Peru as the Chancay Port, a flagship project of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), held a grand opening ceremony on Thursday.
The $1.3 billion mega project is set to revolutionize regional trade by accommodating the world's largest cargo ships and significantly reducing shipping times. The first phase of the project will reduce the sea shipping time from Peru to China to 23 days, cutting logistics costs by at least 20 percent.
The new port has four berths with a maximum depth of 17.8 meters, capable of hosting ultra-large container ships with a capacity of 18,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). The port's designed annual throughput capacity is one million TEUs in the near term and 1.5 million TEUs in the long term, positioning it as a key hub for trade between Latin America and Asia.
Chinese President Xi said in his signed article, published Thursday in the Peruvian media outlet El Peruano, that the Chancay Port project is expected to generate $4.5 billion in yearly revenues for Peru and create over 8,000 direct jobs.
Xi and his Peruvian counterpart Dina Boluarte attended the opening ceremony of Chancay Port via video link on Thursday.
"From Chancay to Shanghai, what we are witnessing is not only the root and blossom of the Belt and Road Initiative in Peru, but also the birth of a new gateway that connects land and sea, Asia and Latin America," said President Xi when addressing the opening ceremony.
Xi flew in earlier Thursday to pay a state visit to Peru and attend the 31st APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting. This is his sixth visit to the continent since 2013.
Transforming regional trade dynamics
The Chancay Port is not only a good deep-water port, but also the first smart port and green port in South America, Xi said.
Strategically located as Peru's gateway to the Pacific, the port is connected to the Pan-American Highway via a tunnel, providing direct access to Peru's capital Lima. As the first "maritime expressway" into Latin America, it will enable faster and more cost-efficient transport of Peruvian exports, such as cranberries and avocados, to Asian markets.
"Our goal is to become the Singapore of Latin America, so that port cargo passes through here when going to Asia. When someone from Brazil, Venezuela, Bolivia, Paraguay and Argentina wants to go to Asia, they should think of Peru as a point of departure," Peruvian Transport Minister Raul Perez Reyes told reporters last month.
The construction of Chancay Port aligns perfectly with the growing demands for trade between China and Latin America.
Additionally, Peru has initiated plans to develop a railway and highway network connecting Chancay Port to major cities across the country, with potential future links to transportation networks in other regional countries, and could support the efficient export of Brazilian soybeans, iron ore, frozen meat, Colombian coffee, avocados and other goods to Asia via this new trade route.
"The Chancay Port will help Peru improve shipping efficiency and deepen trade cooperation with Asia," said David Gamero, a deputy manager at the Chancay megaport project. He added that beyond direct economic benefits, the massive port will also drive the development of Latin America's logistics value chain and advance technological and industrial growth, creating a "multiplier effect."
Xi once referred to Peru as "China's neighbor across the Pacific," and cited an ancient Chinese poem to characterize China's relations with countries in Latin America and the Caribbean: "True friends always feel close to each other no matter the distance between them."
Once the Chancay Port comes into operation, it will be able to integrate the entire Latin American region into the dynamic economic framework of the Asia-Pacific, greatly bolstering connectivity within and beyond the continent.
Intensifying China-Latin America cooperation
The BRI, proposed by China in 2013, incorporated Latin America and the Caribbean region in 2017.
As of 2023, 22 countries in the region have signed BRI cooperation documents with China, according to the report by a steering group for the Belt and Road Initiative. Notable projects include the Belo Monte Hydropower Plant ultra-high-voltage transmission line in Brazil, Argentina's Belgrano Cargas railway, among others.
Additionally, since 2012, China has been the second-largest trading partner of Latin America. In 2023, the total trade volume between China and Latin American countries exceeded $489 billion.
Experts say China's investment and technical support are helping Latin American countries accelerate their economic development and have become an important driving force for the development of the Global South. They also voiced expectation for Xi's attendance at APEC to inject positive momentum into regional integration and economic cooperation.
Rafael del Campo Quintana, vice president of the Peruvian Exporters Association, said that APEC is not only an important platform for promoting regional trade and economic cooperation but also provides developing countries, including Peru, with opportunities to deeply integrate into the global economy.
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