On April 29, train YK6746, fully loaded with 4,158 tons of iron ore powder of Jingye Group, departed from the Longkou Port Station along the Dajiawa–Laizhou–Longkou Railway. This marked the beginning of reverse cargo transportation service along the Huanghua-Dajiawa Railway and the opening of a two-way transport channel across Shandong and Hebei provinces.
Shandong Province boasts a strong economy and rich natural resources. Its pillar industries include textile, chemicals, food, equipment manufacturing and nonferrous metals. It is home to a number of industrial giants, each with paid tax exceeding 100 million yuan, including Weiqiao Pioneering, Xiwang Group, BEFAR Group and Chambroad Holding Group. Shandong leads the nation in the sales of textile products, aluminium oxide, processed grain, and many other products, presenting huge demand for cargo transportation along the Huanghua-Dajiawa Railway in reverse direction.
To seize the potential market, the company took proactive measures to implement the group corporation’s requirement for making foray into the transportation industry. In close coordination with sales departments, it began to explore non-coal freight business. The company made several field trips to the Qingzhou-Dajiawa Railway, Dajiawa-Laizhou-Longkou Railway, Longkou Port Station and Shandong freight sales company to delve into the feasibility of the business and explore possible cooperation. Under its initiative, representatives of the Shandong Port went to the Huanghua-Dajiawa Railway for business talks, making full preparation for the non-coal cargo transportation.
The launch of the new business extended the transportation chain of returned trip along the Huanghua-Dajiawa Railway. Such a “shuttle” mode effectively improves the transportation capacity and opens a new two-way transportation route connecting the Longkou Port and the western regions, which is of great significance to the Group’s efforts of exploring the Shandong market and conducting railway-business cooperation, the promotion of economic development of the Yellow River Delta area and the vitalization of the Bohai Bay Economic Rim.
