Dongjiakou Port, part of the Qingdao Port in East China's Shandong Province, plans to build its forth generation port. The port will provide three major trading channels for ore, oil and coal.

To date, 19 projects have settled in the 70-square-kilometer area, with a total investment of over $1.58 billion.

With many industries gathering in the area, the city is developing into a modern international port city integrating the logistics, business, and modern service industries.

The city will launch a Baltic-Dongjiakou Index for dry cargo to increase China's influence in the international market.

"The new port adopts the most advanced clearance mode in the world," said Guan Xinbo, deputy director of the Qingdao Port and Shipping Administration Bureau.

"The forth generation of the Dongjiakou Port will be a long-term goal of the area," Guan said at the Expert Assessment and Evaluation Conference on the Strategic Development Plan of Dongjiakou Port on Dec 26.

Two proposition issues, Research on Dongjiakou Development Under the Blue Economy Strategy, and the Strategic Plan for Developing Qingdao Dongjiakou, were approved at the meeting.

Experts present at the conference agreed that Dongjiakou, an indispensable part of the Shandong Peninsular Blue Economic Zone, has great development opportunities.

"By the year 2020, its cargo throughput capacity will reach 300 million tons and a population of 500,000. The area's regional GDP is expected to reach $7.9 billion, and the local budget revenue will increase to over $1.1 billion," said Guan.

Meanwhile, the port customs clearance center and distribution center of the port have been put into use.

According to the customs department, the port's Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau, Immigration Inspection Bureau and The Bureau of Marine Affairs are combined into a correlated office.

With favorable policies for storage, distribution and trade in bulk cargo, Dongjiakou is expected to attract suppliers from around the globe.

In addition to harbor industries, residential communities and other facilities are included in the area's development plan.

The city government is now hoping the port's development will be included in the nation's overall economic development plan for the next five years and is seeking strategic investment partners around the world.

The natural conditions in the south of Qingdao are well suited to the Dongjiakou deep-water port with year-round, ice-free shipping routes and an average water depth of 15 meters off the coast.

The port aims to become a shipping and storage center of bulk cargo and energy, and its development is expected to help Qingdao Port rank high in the global market in terms of ore, crude oil and containers and make Shandong a shipping hub for northeast Asia, according to local authorities.

Reinforcing Qingdao's position as a national distribution center, three large berths – an ultra-large ore berth and two 50,000-ton ones for multipurpose facilities - have been open at Dongjiakou Port since the end of 2010, two years ahead of schedule. There are 112 berths with a total planned capacity of 10,000-ton or larger vessels.

Once complete, the Dongjiakou Port will have a handling capacity of 370 million tons per year in bulk materials and cargo.

By the end of October 2010, investment in the port surpassed 10 billion yuan ($1.5 billion). Projects totaling an investment of 30 billion yuan have been signed with the area.

Among them is a 9.7 billion yuan liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility project by China Petroleum and Chemical Corp (Sinopec), which started construction in September with the approval from the National Development and Reform Commission.

It will become the first LNG loading site in the province when completed.

China Huaneng Group, one of the largest power generation companies in the country, has invested 1.1 billion yuan in coal and general-purpose berths, two of which will be open for trial operation at the end of this year.

Another coal berth will be built by China Datang Corp, also a leading Chinese power generation company. With a price tag of 1.6 billion yuan, the project is scheduled to begin construction in the second half of 2012.

In addition to domestic giants, foreign companies are also interested in new facilities at the port.

Switzerland's Mercuria Energy Group, one of the world's largest energy trading companies, is in negotiations to build a large crude oil berth and 5-million-ton capacity storage yard at the port.

Plans by Singapore-headquartered IMC Group's plans for a 4 billion yuan ore berth are in the approval process.

Local authorities have also signed preliminary agreements with Hong Kong's Modern Terminal Ltd and Hutchison Whampoa Ltd for container facilities.

Vice minister of Transport Xu Zuyuan said at a port development meeting in May that developing a low-carbon port was the key for the sustainable growth of China's transport industry.

Authorities said they would make full use of the latest technologies and renewable energy while exploring innovative ways to reduce energy consumption and improve water treatment.

Main roads in the area have been lined with solar-powered lights while greenbelt coverage has expanded.

Authorities said they insist on stringent requirements of environmental standards and pollution control when selecting projects.

By Xie Chuanjiao and Wu Binbin (chinadaily.com.cn)

Edited by Chen Zhilin and Emily Cheng