On March 26, the Hubei Port Group initiated the "Thousand Sails Plan," alongside the maiden voyage ceremonies for the Huahang New Energy 2 and 3 all-electric container ships in Wuhan, Hubei. Themed "Smart Manufacturing Sets Sail, Green Energy for Long Voyages," this launch event represents a crucial step for Hubei in deeply implementing the Yangtze River Economic Belt development strategy and strengthening its water transport advantages. It also serves as a significant measure to expand high-end equipment manufacturing and create a replicable, promotable "Hubei model" for the green transformation of China's inland waterway shipping.
The region concentrates 80% of the nation's research and design for green intelligent vessels and over 60% of the supporting ship electric drive systems. It boasts seven academicians, twelve master ship designers, and nearly 9,000 professional R&D personnel. Since the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Hubei Provincial Government signed a memorandum of cooperation in 2023, designating Hubei as a pilot for promoting green and smart development of inland vessels, and with the official release of the "Hubei Province Work Plan for Promoting the Transformation, Upgrading, and High-Quality Development of the Inland Shipbuilding Industry" in 2025, the green intelligent shipbuilding sector has become a key growth pole within Hubei's "51020" advanced manufacturing industrial cluster. Hubei has established a first-mover advantage across the entire industrial chain, aiming to build a cluster for green intelligent inland vessels.
Hubei is currently focusing on developing a high-end equipment manufacturing industrial chain, positioning the green intelligent shipbuilding industry as a major driver for creating a "trillion-yuan water economy" in the province. It provides systematic policy support in areas such as demonstration applications, financial backing, scientific research, market incentives, industrial layout, and the prioritized promotion and passage of official vessels.
As the "chain leader" enterprise implementing the plan, Hubei Port Group has taken on the main responsibility for transforming inland waterway shipping. According to Zhou Yongshi, Party Secretary and Chairman of Hubei Port Group, the core of the "Thousand Sails Plan" is "green" and the key is "intelligence," representing a profound transformation across the entire industrial chain—from R&D, design, and manufacturing to operation, support, and services. The Group will collaborate with the government, research institutions, and industrial chain enterprises to establish four coordinated guarantee mechanisms covering "policy, capital, technology, and talent," creating a full industrial chain ecosystem encompassing "R&D, design, manufacturing, operation, support, and service."
Through the implementation of the "Thousand Sails Plan," the promotion of "electricity replacing oil" will reduce vessel operating costs, provide integrated logistics solutions for hinterland enterprises, optimize the transport structure by shifting freight from road to water, and effectively lower overall social logistics costs.
The "Thousand Sails Plan" has set clear phased goals. The long-term overall target by 2030 is to demonstrate and drive the construction, renovation, and renewal of 1,000 new energy vessels in Hubei Province. This will be advanced in stages. By 2027, the plan aims to lead the province in operating over 600 green intelligent inland vessels, establish five demonstration routes, and develop and promote six types of leading standard vessel designs. By 2030, the goal is to reach 1,000 green intelligent inland vessels, expand demonstration routes to more than 10, achieve 100% coverage of new energy supply facilities in core port areas along the Hubei sections of the Yangtze and Han Rivers, research and promote 10 types of leading standard vessel designs, ensure core technologies are independently controllable, and stimulate rapid, transformative development of the green intelligent shipbuilding industry along the Golden Waterway of the Yangtze River.
Achieving these goals requires coordinated effort across the entire industrial chain. At the launch event, government, enterprises, research institutions, and financial entities joined hands, signing a series of cooperation agreements that outline a clear path for collaborative industrial development. On site, Hubei Port Group signed a "Green Port and Shipping Industry Cooperation Agreement" with the National Green Development Fund Co., Ltd. and the Yangtze River Industrial Investment Group. China Huadian Corporation Ltd. Hubei Branch, Hubei Port Group, and the 712 Research Institute of China State Shipbuilding Corporation Limited signed the "Cooperation Agreement for High-Quality Development of the Green Intelligent Inland Shipping Industry." Port enterprises and partners signed agreements including the "Ship Supply Chain Business Cooperation Agreement," a "New Shipbuilding Project Agreement for 20 vessels worth 500 million yuan," the "Green Smart Port and Shipping Industry-Finance Cooperation Framework Agreement," and a "Government-Enterprise Cooperation Agreement."
Simultaneously, the launch of the East Lake Yacht pilot demonstration project and the promotion of the "Qianfan Tong" financial product further enriched the application scenarios and strengthened the financial support for the green intelligent shipbuilding industry.
As the first demonstration achievement of the "Thousand Sails Plan," the maiden voyage ceremony for the Huahang New Energy 2 and 3 vessels was held, providing a live example for the development of new energy vessels on inland waterways. According to She Xiuqi, Party Committee Member and Deputy General Manager of Hubei Port Huazhong Port and Shipping Logistics Group Co., Ltd. (Huazhong Port and Shipping), the Huazhong new energy fleet comprises five all-electric container ships. The first ship, Huahang New Energy 1, commenced service in November 2023, being the first all-electric container vessel deployed for operations on the Yangtze River and its tributaries in Hubei. This vessel has a designed capacity of 120 TEUs, a designed speed of 18 km/h, and a range of 175 km. Its deck is equipped with four standard container-style mobile power units, allowing for battery swapping at Yangluo Port and fast charging at the Xiantao Port charging station. Calculations show that a single ship can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 334 tons annually, with a total lifecycle emission reduction of 6,685 tons. For round trips of equivalent power, it can also save fuel costs by 3,118 yuan per voyage, achieving a win-win situation for both ecological and economic benefits.
The newly launched Huahang New Energy 2 and 3 vessels have been optimized for the actual conditions of the Han River waterway, with their length adjusted to 78 meters, while maintaining all other core performance parameters, forming a scaled and standardized fleet pattern. Once all five vessels are operational, they will run a high-frequency "daily service" model, opening intercity green zero-carbon routes from Wuhan Yangluo to cities like Ezhou and Huanggang within the province, thereby building an efficient and convenient green water transport corridor connecting the Han River and the Yangtze River.
According to Xu Zhengshan, Party Branch Secretary and Chairman of Hubei Port Yangtze River Ship Supply Chain Co., Ltd., the "Thousand Sails Plan" also outlines key tasks such as tackling the integration of ship "three-electric" (battery, motor, electronic control) systems, acquiring and integrating shipyards to form batch construction capabilities, expanding green demonstration routes, and deploying charging and battery swap stations along the rivers. By 2026, Hubei Port Group plans to acquire and integrate more than two shipyards, forming an annual production capacity of no less than 100 new energy vessels. It aims to build a "Hubei Provincial Team" for new energy vessel operations, with four all-electric container ships launched in the first quarter of 2026. The plan also includes developing intelligent production lines and business models for river and lake cruise ships and yachts, opening intercity "zero-carbon freight" pendulum routes centered on Wuhan, and cooperating with Huadian Group to accelerate the coordinated deployment and operation of energy supply infrastructure along the Yangtze and Han River ports, thereby densifying the energy supply network along the river ports.