Construction of Shanghai Port's largest automated container terminal in full swing

Shanghai is developing the north area of Xiaoyangshan Island into Shanghai Port's largest automated container terminal, according to a recent briefing by the Shanghai International Port Group (SIPG).

Upon completion, the project, which is a pivotal initiative for Shanghai and is identified as a national key project in the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) , will become a next-generation intelligent container terminal and an environmentally sustainable green port zone.

As the world's busiest container port, Shanghai Port achieved a remarkable feat by handling 51.51 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) in 2024, maintaining its position as the global leader in container throughput for 15 consecutive years. Despite its success, Shanghai Port has faced challenges due to a scarcity of shoreline resources, prompting a focus on enhancing operational efficiency rather than expanding infrastructure in recent years, except for the initial phase of the container port renovation project at Luojing Port.

The ongoing development in the north area of Xiaoyangshan Island aims to address this issue by adding a new shoreline spanning 6,100 meters. This expansion includes a container terminal shoreline of 5,500 meters, featuring seven 70,000-tonnage and 15 20,000-tonnage container berths, with a designed annual throughput capacity of 11.6 million TEUs.

The project, which will take around eight years to complete, will integrate cutting-edge automated terminal technologies and adhere strictly to ecological and green port standards from construction to future operations. It is set to establish a new benchmark for the digital, intelligent, and sustainable transformation of Shanghai International Shipping Center's infrastructure, according to Shanghai Port.

Described as one of China's most significant maritime endeavors, the project involves reclaiming approximately 100 million cubic meters of land, as highlighted by Wu Qingfei, deputy director of the engineering command center at SIPG. By the end of 2024, investments in the project had surpassed 6 billion yuan ($0.83 billion), with an additional projected investment of over 4 billion yuan in 2025.

To facilitate the massive undertaking, the operational zone has been segmented into four sections from west to east to ensure continuous construction and phased operation. The first section is scheduled for completion by the end of 2026, followed by inspection and trial operations.

The construction team faces unique challenges in the north area of Xiaoyangshan Island, where the absence of a natural barrier exposes the site to winter cold waves and northeasterly winds, limiting the effective construction period to just 10 days per month from November to March the following year. In response, a 7,500-meter-long breakwater is being constructed at sea parallel to the dockyard, utilizing innovative "large cylindrical buckets" as foundations, a pioneering approach in offshore dock and revetment structures.

Li Junfeng contributed to this story.