Antwerp, Caofeidian in China to collaborate on ‘One Belt One Road’

The Antwerp Port Authority has inked an agreement with the Chinese port to develop increased ocean trade, namely in steel, and the explore possibility of a rail connection.    The Antwerp Port Authority and the Port of Caofeidian in China have agreed to collaborate on China’s “One Belt One Road” project to connect the two regions through trade via ocean shipping.
   The agreement aims to boost regular ocean liner services between the two ports, along with exploring the possibility of establishing a rail connection.    
   Signed by the prime ministers of both Belgium and China at the Val Duchesse castle, the agreement was one of seven other agreements between the two countries.
   The port of Caofeidian, situation in the northern section of the Bohai Bay, last year handled 260 million metric tons of freight, including 36 million metric tons of steel. The volume of steel transported between Caofeidian and Antwerp is estimated to be between 500,000 and 700,000 metric tons annually, according to the Antwerp Port Authority.
   Per the agreement, “port professionals from Caofeidian [will] follow a training package later this year developed specially by APEC-Antwerp/Flanders Port Training Centre, the maritime training institute of the port of Antwerp,” and the ports will engage in “mutual promotion and exchange of information,” said the Antwerp Port Authority.