Recently, the General Office of Henan Provincial Government issued Henan Port-Based Industrial Development Plan (2025–2035) (hereinafter referred to as the Plan), outlining a blueprint for the port-related economic growth over the next decade. The Plan proposes to establish a port-based industrial framework guided by “three core hubs, five collaborative belts, and multiple supporting nodes.”By 2030, Henan aims to cultivate over nine port-based industrial clusters each worth 100 billion yuan and nurture more than 10 homegrown shipping industry leaders (“Henan Shipping Champions”). By 2035, the scale of the port-based industry is expected to reach 2 trillion yuan, forming a modernized industrial system that reduces costs, enhances efficiency, fosters port-industry synergy, promotes river basin coordination, and drives open innovation.
In recent years, Henan has accelerated the development of its inland waterway shipping network to achieve river-sea connectivity, with its port economy entering a phase of robust growth. The Plan serves dual purposes: to address transportation infrastructure gaps beyond the existing railway, highway and air networks, while leveraging this river-sea access to deepen industrial collaboration with the Yangtze River Delta region. The Plan designates Zhoukou, Xinyang and Zhengzhou as three core hubs for port-based industrial development. Zhoukou will build upon its industrial foundations in steel, grain, and oil processing to accelerate the cultivation of modern logistics, advanced equipment manufacturing, and new materials industrial clusters. With a focus on undertaking industrial transfers from the Yangtze River Delta region—particularly in equipment manufacturing and new materials—it aims to establish itself as the province's pioneering zone for port-based industrial development. Xinyang Port will strengthen domestic collaboration with east and south of Henan to enhance coordinated development across the food processing and building materials supply chains. Externally, it will deepen partnerships with the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Yangtze River Delta, positioning itself as a new hub for industrial openness and international cooperation. Zhengzhou Port will establish itself as a multimodal transport hub, integrating four transportation networks (railway, highway, aviation and waterway) and a strategic nexus connecting domestic and international dual circulation systems. By strengthening connectivity with Zhoukou Port, it will develop a comprehensive collection and distribution network to create an efficient multi-modal transport corridor.
A robust supporting infrastructure system is essentiali for developing port-based industries with the use of water transport advantages. The Plan proposes to implement the Central Region Efficient Waterway Access Project, which includes establishing a two-tiered "2+8" port system and creating a "one vertical, three horizontal, nine tributary" backbone waterway network. The blueprint also calls for developing dry ports in Kaifeng, Luoyang, Anyang and other locations to serve as inland support hubs for port industries. By leveraging major waterways and a comprehensive multimodal shape of "米+井+人” in transport corridor, the initiative will establish multiple interprovincial land-water transport routes while enhancing collection and distribution systems for both seaports and dry ports.
Source: China Transport News