Police officers releases fish fries into a section of the Yangtze River in Wuhan, Hubei province, May 15, 2018. (Photo/China Daily)
New ship models
In addition to welcoming more trains in the near future, Yangluo Port is expected to see more large cargo ships docking as early as the latter half of next year.
Current models of seafaring vessels with displacements of 10,000 tons and higher usually dock at ports along the lower reaches of the Yangtze because the waterway gradually becomes more meandering and the colossal ships are unable to navigate the zigzagging turns.
For the past 15 years, Wu Weiguo, chief professor at Wuhan University of Technology, has been attempting to solve the problem by designing vessels that can be used on both rivers and seas.
The 58-year-old will see his brainchild become a reality when the first of four river and seagoing container ships he has designed embarks on her maiden voyage as early as August next year. The four vessels are currently under construction.
The first ship, with a displacement of more than 10,000 tons and able to carry 1,140 TEU containers, will be the largest container vessel capable of sailing along the Yangtze from Shanghai to Wuhan and also ply the coastal waters of the East China Sea, according to Wu.
The vessel will transport almost double the 580 containers carried by vessels that currently shuttle up and down the river.
"That requires the ship to have the both an oceangoing vessel's resistance to high waves and a river ship's maneuverability to deal with complicated water routes," Wu said.
Designing a 10,000-ton ship to meet that criterion is a complex engineering project, and Wu and his team started by learning from their Europeans counterparts, who have been building similar vessels for use on rivers such as the Rhine and the Volga.
In the past decade, Wu has sent dozens of his students and professors to universities in Germany and the Netherlands to study local ship models, and then adapt those designs to deal with the Yangtze's features, improving safety and making the ships more efficient.
"I feel happy that many buyers have ordered our ships because they think they are more cost effective," Wu said, adding that the buyers include major players such as China COSCO Shipping Corp, Huazhong Ship Group, and Sinotrans& CSC Holdings Co.
"We are also negotiating with buyers from Germany and Russia."
