China announces International Blue Ocean Transport Corridor Cooperation Initiative

View of the cargo port in Tianjin, China. (Photo: Xinhua/VNA)

According to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA) correspondent in Beijing, at the opening ceremony of the 2025 International Maritime Forum held on October 19 in Shanghai, China’s Ministry of Transport announced the **International Green Shipping Corridor Cooperation Initiative**. The initiative aims to promote global maritime cooperation in building a safer, more efficient, and environmentally friendly shipping ecosystem.

According to the initiative, under the principles of voluntariness and openness, participating parties will jointly implement seven major cooperation measures to develop international green shipping corridors: gradually establishing a network of international green shipping corridors and forming a sustainable multilateral cooperation framework; promoting the development of green, low-carbon fleets and increasing the proportion of vessels using clean energy on these corridors; building (near) zero-carbon emission ports, encouraging vessels to use shore power while docked, and enhancing green fuel supply capacity and related port infrastructure.

The initiative also aims to strengthen the capacity of green fuel supply chains by creating a closed-loop system covering production, transportation, and storage; jointly establishing a multilateral-recognized sustainable marine fuel certification system; fostering coordination between governments and markets; promoting bilateral and multilateral cooperation agreements between regulatory agencies, port enterprises, and shipping companies at various levels; sharing experiences and best practices in green maritime development; and encouraging innovation and application of science and technology in the green shipping sector.

At the forum, several concrete outcomes of green shipping corridor cooperation were announced, including: the **Shanghai–Barcelona Digital Green Shipping Corridor**; the **Shanghai–Antwerp–Bruges Green Shipping Corridor**; the **Shanghai–Melbourne Joint Green Maritime Corridor Initiative**; the **Qingdao–Hamburg Green Shipping Corridor**; the **Qingdao–Wilhelmshaven Green Shipping Corridor**; the **Ningbo Zhoushan–HAROPA (France) Green Shipping Corridor**; and the **Shanghai–Los Angeles/Long Beach Green Shipping Corridor**, which has completed its first target phase.

Speaking at the forum, Mr. Yu Fulin, Director of the Shanghai Transport Commission, stated: “Shanghai Port is currently one of the few ports in the world capable of direct ship-to-ship refueling with LNG and methanol. The city is actively developing an international green fuel supply center, contributing to the sustainable development goals of the global maritime industry.”

At present, China’s maritime transport network has maintained its position as the world’s largest for many consecutive years, with **70 countries and regions** having signed bilateral and multilateral maritime agreements with China./.