Smart port boosts China-Vietnam trade

A section of the Friendship Pass Smart Port Project. [Photo by Li TingXuan/for chinadaily.com.cn]

The Youyiguan Port, or Friendship Pass, one of the largest and most convenient land ports connecting China and Vietnam, is nearing completion on its smart port project. Once operational, the port will enable round-the-clock, unmanned and intelligent customs clearance.

The Friendship Pass Smart Port Project, with satellite navigation and 5G technology, employs intelligent guided vehicle and inspection systems to achieve 24/7 customs clearance. Previously, traditional channels required customs officers to physically unload goods for manual inspection. Now, leveraging smart inspection platform technology, the port achieves automatic, round-the-clock inspection, eliminating the need for drivers to wait on-site. This has led to a surge in customs clearance volume at the Friendship Pass this year, with a daily average of approximately 1,500 vehicle crossings.

A bus carrying Vietnamese goods enters the Friendship Pass. [Photo by Li TingXuan/for chinadaily.com.cn]

"Normally, crossing takes us two or three days. There are too many vehicles, and the port's handling capacity is limited, so we just have to wait," said a driver from Central China's Henan province.

"It took me three days and nights to haul the goods from Shandong. I suppose I'll have to wait another two or three days to cross the border," stated a driver working in the industrial sector. "A two-to-three-day clearance time is still a bit long. We hope the speed can be increased. The faster, the better."

When asked about the smart port project, both drivers expressed strong support.

Automated vertical container handling systems. [Photo by Li TingXuan/for chinadaily.com.cn]

The Friendship Pass Smart Port has currently met the preliminary conditions for trial operation, including five automated vertical container handling systems, ten unmanned transport vehicles, and an intelligent inspection zone. Upon becoming operational, the project will enable "round-the-clock, contactless, unmanned, and intelligent" customs clearance operations. This initiative not only strengthens Pingxiang's border region capacity for opening-up but also injects new momentum into the construction of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor.

Drivers await customs clearance at Friendship Pass. [Photo by Li TingXuan/for chinadaily.com.cn]

Pingxiang city in Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, situated on the China-Vietnam border, is one of China's most accessible land routes to ASEAN countries. Friendship Pass stands as the land port with the highest Sino-Vietnamese cross-border trade volume. As a crucial hub of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, the city has leveraged its geographical advantages in recent years to accelerate smart port construction and deepen economic and trade cooperation with ASEAN countries like Vietnam.

Zhao Yujie, Deng Jiajun, Wang Zijian, Zhao Deyu, Gao Yixuan and Li Tingxuan contributed to the story.