Explainer: What is Mawan Terminal? How China’s high-tech ports could change how 80% of global trade moves
The Chinese city of Shenzhen is hosting the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit on 18th and 19th November, and this time around they will get to witness the future of shipping - a modern port which comes with driverless cranes as well as next-generation software and hardware.
This terminal, known as the Mawan Terminal, also has driverless trucks and AI-powered systems, and is among the numerous port operations across the country which Beijing hopes will make it the foremost player in the industry, shipping, which controls upwards of 80% of the global trade by volume.
Reuters, which spoke to western experts regarding China's growing influence in a number of ports across the world, says that these experts fear that Beijing might race ahead of the US with its expanding shipping technology.
They fear that this would help China get monopolistic positions in new technologies which could then be used to coerce other economies or exploit back doors in order to spy on their rivals or cripple trade routes during times of crisis.
However, not everything has been in favour of China on its way to modernise shipping and ports. LOGINK, a shipping data platform backed by Beijing which Americans were afraid could become a trade superweapon, collapsed, as per a Reuters report.
Despite the challenges, Beijing has signalled that it remains unwavered when it comes to its ambitions to modernise maritime trade.
"Whoever completes the digital transformation first will gain the upper hand in the next round of global port and shipping competition," China’s transport ministry said in a May editorial published on its website.
China claims that it is ahead of its Western peers when it comes to automating ports. China already has 60 automated terminals like Mawan, which is already more than any other country.
Besides Mawan, the New Qianwan Container Terminal in the eastern city of Qindao is another major technological achievement. It is the world's first fully automated terminal. Chna wants to have 90 such terminals by the year 2030.
Each crane at Qianwan can handle 61 containers in an hour, which is more than double the rate with traditional methods.
Compared to China, the US has not been able to automate its ports at such a rapid pace, owing to opposition from unions, which are worried about losses of jobs.
Besides improving its own trade, the high-tech ports also become a testing ground for Beijing to sell these technologies to other countries.
Companies like Westwell and Huawei are already packaging smart-port technology for overseas markets, Reuters reports.
With agency inputs
Sayak Basu is a digital journalist with more than seven years of experience in covering general news, politics, science, cricket, and football. He brings a sharp editorial eye and a keen attention to detail in the newsroom.<br><br> Sayak focuses on breaking stories, analysis of political and sporting events, and new scientific research that is pushing the limits of civilisation.<br><br> He has earlier worked for publications like NewsBytes, Cinemaholic, Zacks Investment Research, and Deccan Herald. Sayak currently serves as an Assistant Editor at Livemint where he runs daily news operations.<br><br> Sayak has a master's degree in English Literature from Jadavpur University, Kolkata.<br><br> Based out of Bengaluru, he has a keen interest in world cinema, literature, sports, and music.
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