Update 19 Oct 2023: The "One Belt, One Road" initiative 一带一路
One Belt, One Road OBOR or the Belt and Road Initiative BRI is a development strategy and framework, proposed by Chinese paramount leader Xi Jinping that focuses on connectivity and cooperation among countries primarily between the People's Republic of China and the rest of Eurasia.
It consists of two main components, the land-based "Silk Road Economic Belt" and the ocean going "Maritime Silk Road".
The strategy underlines China's push to take a bigger role in global affairs, and its need for priority capacity cooperation in areas such as steel manufacturing.
The new Silk Road: freight trains have replaced camel caravans, but all roads still lead to Xi’an
Over 2,000 years ago, Zhang Qian, a renowned diplomat of China’s Han Dynasty, ventured out of the prosperous capital city of Chang’an (now Xi’an City in northwest China’s Shaanxi Province) and embarked on a trail-blazing west-bound journey.
With two diplomatic missions, Zhang initiated friendly exchanges between China and its Central Asian peers. The ancient Silk Road, eventually linking the East and the West, Asia and Europe, thus came into being.
Merchants of different races and speaking various languages, fully loaded with goods on camel caravans, traveled the Silk Road, bridging the ancient Eastern and Western civilizations. Today, an open, inclusive and mutually beneficial modern Silk Road is taking shape. The ancient camel caravans have morphed into something stronger and faster.
What remains unchanged is Xi’an’s important role in the historic route of exchanges. Xi’an has transformed from the starting point of the ancient Silk Road to the first station of the China-Europe freight train, named after its ancient moniker of Chang’an, which literally means “eternal stability” in Chinese.
Shanghai launches its 50th China-Europe freight train
The 50th "Shanghai Express" of the China-Europe freight train officially departed from Shanghai on Wednesday, one year after it was first launched.
China-Europe freight train from Turkmenistan arrives at China's Xi'an
China-Europe freight train service takes18 days compared to 35 days using marine shipping
A China-Europe freight train arrives at Xi'an international port in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, Aug. 31, 2022. The freight train loaded with raw materials of liquorice, a Chinese medicinal herb, which departed from Turkmenistan, arrived at the Xi'an international port in Shaanxi Province on Wednesday.
JSQ freight vehicle leaves Chongqing for first pilot run to Moscow
18 days using the China-Europe freight train service, compared to 35 days using marine shipping
A JSQ freight vehicle of China Railway Special Cargo Logistics Co., Ltd. is about to leave Yuzui Station in southwest China's Chongqing, July 21, 2022.
A JSQ freight vehicle of China Railway Special Cargo Logistics Co., Ltd., loaded with 207 cars manufactured by Changan Automobile, left Yuzui Station in southwest China's Chongqing on Thursday for its first pilot run to Moscow, Russia.
Shipping time from Chongqing to Moscow will be reduced to 18 days using the China-Europe freight train service, compared to 35 days using marine shipping.
What is the China-Europe Railway Express, and how much pressure is it under from the Ukraine crisis?
The China-Europe Railway Express, or China Railway Express (CRE), is key logisital cog in President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative. Photo: Xinhua
As the Russian invasion of Ukraine is causing additional strain to the global supply chain that is already dealing with coronavirus-related disruptions, rail transport in the region that is at the nexus of Asia and Europe has become a direct victim.
The China-Europe Railway Express, or China Railway Express (CRE), is a key logistical cog in President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road Initiative.
The cross-continent network has served as a critical pipeline for Chinese exports to Europe in the past few years, especially during the ongoing global shipping crisis as costs soared and port congestion worsened. But now it is facing the most serious challenge in its history.
Rail freight transport between China and Europe
Rail freight routes between China and Europe
There are two main routes for freight trains, with a number of sub-routes:
- The southern route through Kazakhstan and southern Russia is most suited for freight to and from central China, e.g. the regions surrounding Chengdu, Chongqing and Zhengzhou.
- The northern route through Siberia is ideal for container transport for the northern regions around Beijing, Dalian, Suzhou and Shenyang. In Europe, the most important terminals are Duisburg and Hamburg in Germany, and Warsaw in Poland.
The bulk of rail shipments from Asia to Europe are for industries such as automotive, consumer, retail and fashion, industrial manufacturing and technology. Most of the products are destined for Germany, the largest market, but deliveries also go to the surrounding countries: Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Denmark, Switzerland and sometimes stretch to the UK, Spain and Norway. In addition to full container loads (FCL), less than container loads (LCL) have recently become available, with logistics providers arranging the consolidation of several loads from different customers into full containers. This makes rail an attractive solution for smaller shipments. For instance, DSV offers direct LCL rail services running regularly:
- Shanghai to Duesseldorf: weekly cargo service filling two 40-foot containers
- Shanghai to Warsaw: six to seven 40-foot containers a week
- Shenzhen to Warsaw: one to two 40-foot containers a week
- In recent years, China has made substantial investments in the rail link between Asia and Europe under the Belt and Road Initiative, building up its own terminals and rail lines. These investments point to even shorter transit times and lower costs in the long run.
More improvements are on the way. Reefer (refrigerated) containers will be used on a much greater scale. This will enable perishables to be handled more efficiently. Currently, air freight is the primary means of shipping perishables, which is an expensive solution. The potential for shipping non-standard size containers and dangerous goods is also being looked into.
China-Europe cross-border rail transport
Eurasia Train Direct is a service that provides transport between Asia and Europe using the China Railway Express. Nippon Express has developed this cross-border rail transport service between China and Europe as a product offering a “third mode of transport” positioned between air transport and marine transport, and is using this product to meet the increasingly diverse and sophisticated logistics needs of customers.
In order to respond to market needs related to rail transport, the company has concluded a BSA with a Xi'an railway operator enabling the provision of regularly-scheduled transport services, with the aim of reliably securing spaces and boosting transport frequencies. Furthermore, Nippon Express has developed a consolidated transport service to meet the needs of customers wishing to send small-lot cargo quickly and cheaply from the Shanghai area, where there is a concentration of demand regarding cargo bound for Europe. Securing of spaces flexibly, inexpensively, and in bulk has been realized based on the conclusion of a block space agreement (hereinafter “BSA”) with a Xi'an railway operator. Cargo items are collected from various locations in China, and then sent out from Xi'an three times each week (on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday) to Małaszewicze in Poland and Hamburg and Duisburg in Germany.
Making use of regularly-scheduled transport services, a consolidated transport service is provided in which there is one delivery per week (departing every Friday) from the in-house CFS in Shanghai to the in-house CFS in Dusseldorf, and there is integrated management of departures and arrivals at Nippon Express. The lead time between CFSs is 11 to 16 days, and this represents a significant reduction compared to the lead time required for conventional marine transport (about 40 days).
China-Europe Rail Lines Become Supply Chain’s Latest Problem
A freight train carrying medical supplies bound for Madrid departs the city of Yiwu, in China’s Zhejiang Province, in June 2020.Photographer: Lyu Bin/Xinhua/Getty Images
More than a million containers set to ride 6,000-plus miles of railway linking Western Europe to Eastern China via Russia are now having to find new routes by sea, adding to costs and threatening to worsen the global supply chain chaos.
With Moscow’s war raging in Ukraine, exporters and logistics firms transporting auto parts, cars, laptops and smartphones are now looking to avoid land routes passing through Russia or the combat zone. Security risks and payment hurdles stemming from sanctions are mounting, as is wariness that customers in Europe could boycott products that used Russian rail. Kuehne + Nagel International AG, one of Europe’s largest freight forwarders, isn’t accepting rail cargo from China to Europe, according to Marcus Balzereit, senior vice president for Asia Pacific sales at the Switzerland-based company. Some companies are switching to sea, said Glenn Koepke, a general manager at FourKites Inc., a Chicago-based information provider for the logistics industry.
The conflict is adding to congestion at some of the biggest ports, putting further pressure on global supply chains that are still reeling from pandemic-induced manpower shortages. Balzereit said a combination of sea-air solutions could help some automakers and high-tech electronics manufacturers prevent production disruptions despite a surge in costs.
Yiwu–London railway line
The Yiwu–London Railway Line is a freight railway route from Yiwu, China, to London, United Kingdom, covering a distance of roughly 12,000 km (7,500 miles). This makes it the second longest railway freight route in the world after the Yiwu–Madrid railway line, which spans 12,874 km (8,046 miles). It is one of several long-distance freight railway routes from China to Europe on the "New Eurasian Land Bridge" and part of establishing a modern-day Silk Road.
The route was opened on 1 January 2017, making London the 15th European city to have a railway route connection with China, and takes 18 days to complete (other European cities with China-Europe railway routes include Hamburg, Madrid, Rotterdam, Warsaw, etc.). From Yiwu, a trading center 300 km south of Shanghai, the route passes through 9 countries: China, Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Germany, Belgium, France, UK. In order to get to the UK the route passes through the Channel Tunnel between France and the UK. The London end of the route is located at the DB Eurohub in Barking, East London. Two breaks of gauge exist: first from standard gauge in China to Russian gauge in Kazakhstan, and second back to standard gauge when crossing from Belarus to Poland. Because of the difference in gauges trains go through bogie exchange or have containers reloaded to railcars of the correct gauge.
Despite the need to go through bogie exchange, the trip takes only 18 days to complete. In comparison, it takes a large cargo vessel about 30–45 days of sailing to get from East Asia to Northern Europe. Trains are run by different companies. To start with, trains depart for London once a week transporting household items, garments, bags and suitcases. The media has perceived the route as a publicity stunt, as household items and clothing do not require the expedited shipping. The Yiwu–London railway project is part of China's paramount leader Xi Jinping's "One Belt, One Road" policy, which attempts to strengthen the country's trade connections and revive the Silk Road of the past.
The 2021 Silk Road numbers are there: what do they tell us?
The traffic volumes on the train between Europe and China continued to grow, also in the challenging year of 2021. Throughout the year, 1.46 million TEUs of cargo was shipped by train between Europe and China. The figure indicates a 29 per cent increase compared to the year 2020. These numbers were released by the China National Railway Group this week.
Whereas cargo volumes are often expressed in TEUs, the number of trains is also frequently used to indicate the development of the corridor. In 2021, the number of trains between Europe and China amounted to 15,000, a year-on-year increase of 22 per cent. The reason this growth rate differs from the TEU figure, is because a lot of cargo is bundled and loaded on more than one train throughout the journey. What do these numbers tell us? Measuring and comparing volumes on the New Silk Road are always a complex matter, in the first place because there are different sources, reporting different data. The differences between these figures are due to the fact that everyone has a different definition of the New Silk Road.
Whereas some count the numbers on the main route only, others add up all the routes. While China is focused on trains to and from China, you can also consider other destinations. And then there is the question of what you count: TEU’s, the number of trains, cargo in tonnes, only containerised cargo etc. If you have all these numbers at hand, you want to compare them to illustrate what they indicate but for that, you want to be sure not to compare two different sets of data. In conclusion, it is almost impossible to conclude how successful a year has been, taking into account all these figures.
China Railway Express
The two-episode series named The Silk Rail Road is a first-ever co-production by CGTN and NGC (National Geographic Channel). It is co-presented by British historian Sam Willis and CGTN reporter Li Qiuyuan. They investigate how the China Railway Express is benefiting the countries and people along the route of the Belt and Road. In the first episode, the reporters visit a key stop on this network, the city of Yiwu, in Zhejiang Province.
Rediscovering China is a weekly show on CGTN that offers a unique insight into an aspect of life in China today. With its unrivaled access to the country's people and places, Rediscovering China brings you in-depth reports on the major issues facing China at a time of rapid change.
China-Europe rail freight reaches 50,000-train milestone
On January 29, 2022, China marked more than 50,000 freight train trips between China and Europe since the first Europe-bound train left the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing in 2011. The railway is central to the Belt and Road Initiative, connecting China to 180 cities in 23 European countries.
Chinese city launches new China-Europe freight train route
A China-Europe freight train departing from Chengdu International Railway Port in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province. The first China-Europe freight train linking Chengdu and Russia's St. Petersburg departed from Chengdu on Sunday. (Chengdu International Railway Port Administrative Committee/Handout via Xinhua)
A new China-Europe freight train route has been launched, linking Chengdu in southwest China's Sichuan Province with Russia's St. Petersburg.
The first freight train on this route left Chengdu on Sunday, carrying supplies for a key project under the Belt and Road Initiative. The train is expected to reach St. Petersburg in 13 days, much faster than the one to two months required for shipping by sea under the impact of COVID-19, according to Wang Weikun, deputy general manager of Chengdu International Railway Service Co., Ltd.
During the Spring Festival, Chengdu International Railway Port saw the number of China-Europe freight trains increase by 33.3 percent compared with the same period last year, according to the port's administrative committee. Enditem
Chang'an China-Europe freight train service vital for int'l trade
Chang'an China-Europe freight trains, which depart from or arrive in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province, have made great progress in building an important channel for international trade, with its high efficiency and low cost.
Launched in Nov. 2013, the freight train service has become a vital transport link to stabilize global supply chain, especially after the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic.
It has also provided strong support for international anti-epidemic cooperation. In 2020, 56,000 tonnes of medical supplies were transported to Europe via the Chang'an trains. As of Nov. 20, Chang'an China-Europe freight trains had conducted 3,389 trips this year.
China-Europe freight trains promote win-win cooperation
A China-Europe freight train with 45 compartments of anti-epidemic supplies leaves the Xinzhu Railway Station in Xi'an, Northwest China's Shaanxi province, on Aug 12, 2020, to head for Italy's Milan. [Photo/Xinhua]
As of Nov 5, the number of China-Europe freight trains hit a record high of 10,180, according to data from China State Railway Group Co Ltd, shipping 927,000 twenty-foot equivalent units of cargo, up 54 percent year-on-year.
The railway service has played an important role in maintaining smooth logistics and stable supplies between China, Europe and Belt and Road countries amid the COVID-19 outbreak. Nearly 8 million pieces of medical supplies totaling more than 60,000 metric tons have been transported via China-Europe freight trains since the beginning of this year.
By November 5, China-Europe freight trains have reached 92 cities and 21 countries in Europe. “The smooth operation of the China-Europe railway express has demonstrated notable advantages,” said Xavier Wanderpepen, who is responsible for China-Europe rail freight activities at Forwardis, France. “Stable international trade and logistics are very important for us to cope with the pandemic,” said Carlos Santana, who is responsible for the company which operates the Yiwu-Madrid line in Spain.
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