Guoyuan Port has become an important water-to-water transit and intermodal transportation port on the Yangtze River. [Photo/liangjiang.gov.cn]

Guoyuan Port, located in the Liangjiang New Area, reported a significant increase in its container throughput during the first half of this year. The port handled 73,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), representing a 13-percent year-on-year growth.

With the continuous development of the Chengdu-Chongqing Economic Circle, Guoyuan Port is interacting heavily with other ports in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River.

Benefiting from the implementation of the tax rebate policy for export ports, CHINALCO-SWA Co, a subsidiary of China Aluminum Corporation (CHINALCO), is expanding into overseas markets.

"Before the implementation of the tax rebate policy for export ports, our products had to be shipped from Shanghai's Yangshan Port, and it took about two months to complete all necessary customs procedures before applying for the tax rebate," said Wang Jianguo, the company's legal representative.

"Now, after completing clearance procedures at Guoyuan Port, the customs will generate an export declaration for the export port immediately, which will allow us to apply for the tax rebate and receive the refund within just two or three days, shortening the process by more than a month," Wang said.

From January to June this year, the company has already received tax rebates worth 12.16 million yuan ($1.68 million), and annual exports are expected to exceed $240 million.

Guoyuan Port has opened more than 10 water-to-water transit and intermodal transportation routes so far, becoming a major transshipment hub for foreign trade goods from Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan, Shaanxi, Guangxi, and other neighboring areas.

Furthermore, Guoyuan Port is accelerating its development into an intelligent port to improve operational efficiency. The "paperless platform phase II" information system is currently in the testing phase and is expected to begin trial operations by the end of this year.