Deep Water Sea-Route to Yangtze Delta OpensThe 8.5-m-deep and 51.77-km-long new sea route to the Yangtze River delta opened with a trial voyage Thursday, according to the Shanghai Maritime Affairs Administration.The new sea route at the Yangtze River estuary will greatly enhance Shanghai's status as an international shipping center, and promote social and economic development in the region, the administration commented. The former sea route to the delta was less than six m deep, and had long been a bottleneck for Shanghai's development, for third- and fourth-generation container ships could not pass through it. The deepening of the sea route to the Yangtze River delta, with a total investment of more than 15 billion yuan (about 1.8 billion US dollars) began in January 1998. The trial voyages will last for one year, and then the new sea route will be checked for acceptance by the authorities. |
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