Recently, the "Changhang Zijing" vessel sounded its departure whistle, marking the completion of loading 35,000 tons of crude oil at Liaoning Port Group's Dalian Port Oil Terminal Company. The oil, transported by China Merchants Energy Shipping (CMES), was shipped to Huanghua, Hebei, providing stable and efficient raw material supply support for local petrochemical enterprises. Over the years, Liaoning Port Group and CMES have continuously deepened their cooperation, striving to build a comprehensive logistics service system for oil and chemical products. This effort contributes "CMG strength" to meeting customers' personalized logistics needs and ensuring national energy security, vividly illustrating the close coordination and mutually beneficial development philosophy between Liaoning Port Group and its sibling companies under China Merchants Group.
As the largest comprehensive port enterprise in Northeast China, Liaoning Port Group has drawn nourishment from the "CMG bloodline, Hai Liao spirit, and Shekou gene" since joining China Merchants Group. Business collaboration with CMG sibling units has grown from nothing to something, from shallow to deep, establishing a cross-regional, diversified port and shipping logistics service network.
When Liaoning Port Group was first integrated, its primary task was to break down barriers between the original ports and achieve optimal resource allocation. Simultaneously, the group explored multi-faceted business collaboration with units under China Merchants Group, laying the foundation for subsequent in-depth cooperative efforts. After its establishment, in terms of logistics channel construction, Liaoning Port Group continuously deepened cooperation with CMG's port and shipping enterprises such as Changjiang Shipping Group, Sinotrans, China Merchants Shipping, and China Merchants Port. By signing strategic framework agreements, accelerating the improvement of shipping routes, and continuously optimizing the route network layout, a series of collaborative achievements emerged in key areas like "North-to-South Grain Transport," iron ore, and energy storage and transportation. This initially formed the prototype of a north-south linked logistics channel for CMG's port and shipping enterprises.
Through joint efforts, Liaoning Port Group and CMG sibling units gradually established trust mechanisms and a collaborative framework, paving the way for innovations like the "Three Chiefs System." As internal business collaboration within China Merchants Group deepened, establishing a scientific and efficient coordination mechanism became necessary, leading to the creation of the "Three Chiefs System." This system, comprising the "Alliance Chief, Chain Chief, and Account Chief," transformed business collaboration from spontaneous to conscious, and from fragmented to systematic.
The implementation of the "Three Chiefs System" has brought significant efficiency and quality improvements for customers. It effectively integrates resources from ports, shipping, and logistics, extends the service chain, and provides more precise logistics services, offering higher quality, lower-cost service products. As the "Three Chiefs System" became more established, business collaboration between Liaoning Port Group and CMG units entered a mature phase, forming a synergistic ecosystem characterized by multi-party cooperation, mutual benefit, and multiplied efficiency and volume.
The "Ansteel Account Chief" project was rated as one of the first batch of benchmark projects under the "Three Chiefs System," effectively enhancing the overall competitiveness of CMG's transportation and logistics sector. To ensure the smooth operation of the "North-to-South Grain Transport" corridor and safeguard national food security, Liaoning Port Group and China Merchants Port jointly established a bulk cargo route system. New routes such as "Dayao Bay - Shenchi Wan," "Dandong - Shekou," and "Suizhong - Zhangzhou" were launched, bringing the total number of north-south grain routes to ten, with transfer volumes increasing year by year.
Liaoning Port Group also partnered with Sinotrans Northeast to develop grain shipments to the Yangtze River region, jointly promoting the shift of rail-shipped cargo destined for Sichuan and Guizhou to sea transport. In April 2024, they successfully launched the "Yingkou - Chongqing" grain route, calling at multiple ports along the Yangtze River and achieving regular operation with 2-3 voyages per month. Leveraging its full-chain advantages, Liaoning Port Group expanded its crude oil transshipment business. Utilizing Dalian Port's geographical advantages, deep-water berths, and storage tank resources, the group collaborated with CMES and Sinotrans Northeast to build a crude oil transshipment platform in the Bohai Rim region.
They jointly developed transshipment cargo sources for clients like Hengli Petrochemical and Hebei refineries. Through operations such as lightering, transshipment, and the "combined port" model, they ensured efficient and smooth crude oil transfers for customers. By forming a CMG crude oil transfer team with China Merchants Shipping and CMES, a complete logistics transportation channel for CNOOC's crude oil was established. This effectively increased shipping volumes for China Merchants Shipping and CMES, boosted throughput for Liaoning Port Group, and achieved the goal of synergistic port-shipping development and maximized benefits for China Merchants Group.
Capitalizing on the "Ansteel Account Chief" advantage, port-shipping coordinated development was realized. Liaoning Port Group, Sinotrans Northeast, and Changjiang Shipping Group Freight collaborated to establish a new transshipment channel for iron ore using the "Lianying Combined Port" model. Based on iron ore market conditions and railway capacity, they guided Ansteel Group to use more economical 400,000-ton vessels for transshipment at Dalian Port. Changjiang Shipping Group provided secondary shipping to Yingkou Port, where the ore is directly transported via conveyor belt to Ansteel's new plant, opening a cost-effective supply channel for Ansteel.
This project was selected as one of the first batch of typical cases for reducing logistics costs and improving quality and efficiency by the Ministry of Transport, significantly enhancing the reputation of both Liaoning Port Group and China Merchants Group. The business collaboration between Liaoning Port Group and CMG sibling units has not only driven the enterprises' own growth but also provided crucial logistics support for accelerating Northeast China's opening-up. In safeguarding the security of the national logistics supply chain, Liaoning Port Group bears significant responsibility for transporting key materials like energy and grain. Through efficient coordination with CMG's shipping and logistics enterprises, it has effectively enhanced the transportation assurance capability for strategic national materials like crude oil and grain.
With the continuous improvement of the "Three Chiefs System" coordination mechanism and the ongoing expansion of collaborative fields, Liaoning Port Group will play an increasingly vital role in the wave of China Merchants Group's "Third Venture." It will contribute significantly to the nation's efforts to accelerate the construction of a new development pattern and promote the comprehensive revitalization of Northeast China in the new era.