Two new cruise berths will be added to Shanghai’s Wusongkou International Cruise Terminal, China’s largest cruise port, in the first half of 2015. Alan Lam reports.
In a planned press conference, Shanghai Municipal Government confirmed that Phase Two of theWusongkou terminal project would commence in early 2015. The work will add two new berths to the existing ones. In an effort to improve handling this part of the project will also implement further supporting structure for cruise business, such as office spaces for travel agents.
The initial decision to build the Wusongkou terminal was driven by the realisation of the limitations of the older Shanghai Port International Cruise Terminal, which could only accommodate three medium-size ships of no bigger than 87,000 gross tonnes each. The city quickly decided to build its second terminal to accommodate bigger ships and the rapidly growing demand.
Upon its opening in 2011, Wusongkou became the country’s biggest and most advanced world class cruise terminal.
Since then Shanghai has inaugurated a third terminal, the Baoshan International Cruiser Homeport, which is nowthe only profitable Chinese cruise port. In anticipation of an unrelenting growth in the city’s cruise business, there have been talks of building a fourth terminal in a not too distance future.
By the end of November, Shanghai has become the first Chinese port to surpass the one million annual cruise throughput, reaching 1.16 million, representing a 60.1% year-on-year growth.
Phase Two is a part of the on-going Wusongkou project. Adding the two new berthswill propelthe terminal further into its pole position, at least for now.