Guangxi official invites China-ASEAN Expo participants to explore Pinglu Canal

On Sept. 1, the State Council Information Office held a press conference on China-ASEAN economic and trade cooperation, as well as the 23rd China-ASEAN Expo and China-ASEAN Business and Investment Summit.

The 23rd China-ASEAN Expo will be held from Sept. 17 to 21, in Nanning, capital of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Lu Xinning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Regional Committee and vice governor the People's Government of Guangxi, attended the press conference.

The landmark Pinglu Canal will open to navigation before the expo, Lu said. She also brought along a QR code.

"My colleagues have placed another at the entrance. Scan it to enjoy a 720-degree panoramic VR view of the Madao Hub on the Pinglu Canal, as well as a vivid view of the magnificent canal winding through Guangxi's mountains and waterways. The canal as a 'golden corridor' and the expo as a 'golden platform' will reinforce each other, opening a new chapter in China-ASEAN exchanges and cooperation," Lu said.

With a total investment of more than 70 billion yuan (about $10.41 billion) and a length of 134.2 kilometers, the Pinglu Canal starts at the mouth of the Pingtang River in Hengzhou, Nanning, runs through Luwu town in Lingshan county, Qinzhou, and reaches the Beibu Gulf via the Qinjiang River. It is the highest-class navigable river-to-sea canal in China and the world.

An aerial drone photo taken on Aug. 12, 2026 shows trial vessels driving past a navigation lock on the Pinglu Canal in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (Xinhua/Zhou Hua)

Since construction officially began on Aug. 28, 2022, the project has progressed steadily. By May this year, the canal's main works had been completed. On Aug. 12, full-scale vessel trials on the Pinglu Canal began. On Aug. 28, the Pinglu Canal successfully passed its completion acceptance inspection.

In July, diplomatic envoys from several ASEAN countries to China visited Guangxi specifically to inspect the Pinglu Canal. Lu said the visit was "proposed by the envoys themselves." She recalled that one ambassador, standing on a high platform at the Madao Hub, said the project not only demonstrated China's technological capabilities but also reflected its determination to promote regional connectivity.

Notably, the Pinglu Canal is a key project of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor and a landmark project in the country's drive to build a transportation powerhouse.

Accelerating construction of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor is of profound strategic significance for raising the level of opening-up in the western region and optimizing the regional economic landscape.

For years, goods from southwest China transported by water to Southeast Asia had to travel eastward along the Xijiang River before reaching the sea, as the region lacked a direct river-to-sea route.

The Pinglu Canal has opened a direct river-to-sea route between the Xijiang River and the Beibu Gulf, creating the shortest, most convenient and most efficient waterway from Guangxi, as well as southwest and central-southern China, to ASEAN. Once the Pinglu Canal opens, goods from southwest China will reach the sea much faster, significantly reducing transportation costs.

Ships of up to 5,000 tonnes will be able to sail directly from the river to the sea, shortening the voyage by about 560 kilometers compared with the existing waterway route. The canal is expected to save about 5.2 billion yuan in transportation costs annually.

At the press conference, Lu said the Pinglu Canal will not only overcome Guangxi's longstanding disadvantage of being separated from the sea and having to take a detour, but also reshape the economic geography of China-ASEAN cooperation.

An ecosystem for cross-border industrial cooperation will also take shape.

Once the canal opens, capital, technology, talent and labor from southwest China and countries in Southeast Asia will flow and converge more freely, generating new cross-border investment and industrial cooperation projects and enabling regional supply and industrial chains to become more efficient and deeply integrated.

"The expo will also feature a special exhibition area dedicated to the Pinglu Canal. In addition, a series of promotional and matchmaking activities will be held on areas including shipping and logistics, cross-border trade and port-related industries. We hope all parties will get involved early and tap into these opportunities," Lu said.

She said two special inspection routes for the Pinglu Canal will also be arranged during the expo. "We welcome anyone interested to visit the canal in person, and we especially welcome journalists to take a look," she said.