By Zong He

At 13:50 on 31 May, BYD ‘Jinan’ loaded with 7,273 new energy vehicles set out from Nantong Port. The giant ship with 16 decks will cross the Red Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, and arrive at Gioia Tauro, Italy and Barcelona, Spain. The shipment set a new record for the largest single-voyage, single-vessel export of vehicles from a single brand in China, marking the opening of a new channel for Chinese automobiles to reach overseas markets from the northern wing of the Yangtze River Delta.

Data from China Association of Automobile Manufacturers shows that from January to April, China exported a cumulative total of 1.384 million new-energy vehicles, and there is a 120% year-on-year increase. In April, sales of Chinese automotive brands in the European electric vehicle market reached a new high, with their market share surpassing 15% for the first time.

As an important hub for the development of China’s new energy vehicle industry, the Yangtze River Delta region accounts for about 40% of the China’s new energy vehicle output and more than 25% of the global production. In the first quarter of this year, exports of electric vehicles through the Shanghai Port reached 479,000 units, up 79.2% year on year, while automobile exports through Taicang Port totaled approximately 280,000 units, and there is a year-on-year increase of more than 90%. Vehicle roll-on/roll-off (Ro-Ro) exports require efficient collection and distribution networks as well as open-space facilities. As a result, many automakers have turned their attention to the northern bank of the Yangtze River in search of new overseas shipping channels.

Nantong’s integrated logistics system—featuring ‘railways extending directly into the port area and ports connecting to oceans’—has become an ‘accelerator’ for the export of new-energy vehicles. According to reports, the 7,273 new-energy vehicles came from four cities, including Hefei, Changzhou, and Xi’an. More than 95% were transported by rail, with all vehicles arriving at the Lvsi Port Automobile Logistics Base on the Yanglv Railway in Nantong within seven days. Deng Huaiyu, Director of Logistics at BYD’s self-operated logistics center, explained that the rail-sea intermodal transport model can significantly improve transportation efficiency and reduce logistics costs. For this reason, Nantong Port has become BYD’s first export gateway for automobiles on the northern wing of the Yangtze River Delta.

To BYD ‘Jinan’, the shipping task is a trip home to visit family. Its birthplace is exactly the China Merchants Shipbuilding Industry Haimen Base in Nantong. ‘Jinan’ is not only the first 9,200-vehicle-capacity ultra-large roll-on/roll-off ship built by a Nantong shipbuilding enterprise, but also the world's first new energy roll-on/roll-off ship to adopt ‘dual green drive’ of LNG dual fuel + BYD marine battery pack.

【背景阅读】

载着7273辆新能源汽车

比亚迪“济南号”从南通驶向欧洲

5月31日13时50分，载着7273台新能源汽车的比亚迪“济南号”从南通港启航，这艘拥有16层甲板的巨轮，将穿越红海、地中海，最终抵达意大利焦亚陶罗、西班牙巴塞罗那。这次发运创下中国单次单船单一品牌汽车出口最大规模，标志着长三角北翼打开“国车出海”新通道。

中汽协数据显示，今年1至4月，中国新能源汽车累计出口138.4万辆，同比增长1.2倍。今年4月，中国汽车品牌在欧洲电动汽车市场的销量再攀新高，占比首次突破15%。

作为我国新能源汽车产业发展重要高地，长三角地区新能源汽车产量约占全国40%，全球占比超25%。今年一季度，上海口岸出口电动汽车出口47.9万辆，同比增长79.2%；太仓港出口汽车约28万辆，同比增长超90%。汽车滚装出口需要便捷的集疏运体系和开阔的场地，多家车企将寻找出海新通道的目光投向长江北岸。

南通构建的“铁路进港区、港口通大洋”集疏运体系，成为助力新能源车出海的“加速器”。据了解，这7273台新能源汽车来自合肥、常州、西安等4座城市，超过95%通过铁路运输，7天内全部抵达南通洋吕铁路吕四港汽车物流基地。比亚迪自营物流中心总监邓怀宇介绍，铁水联运可以明显提升运输效率、降低物流成本，因此，南通港才成为比亚迪在长三角北翼的首个汽车出海通道。

对比亚迪“济南号”而言，承担这次运送任务是一次探亲之旅。它的诞生地，正是位于南通的招商船舶海门基地。“济南号”既是南通船企建造的首艘9200车位级超大型滚装船，也是全球首创采用LNG双燃料+比亚迪船用电池组“双绿驱动”的新能源滚装船。