Ningbo-Zhoushan container terminal resumes operations

Operations at a COVID-19-struck terminal at Ningbo-Zhoushan port have slowly resumed, with full restoration expected by the end of August 2021.

The Meishan Island International Container Terminal (MSICT) halted operations earlier in August 2021 when a port operative tested positive for COVID-19.

On 25 August national media reported that operations at the terminal will slowly resume.

“All units in the zone must comprehensively do a good job in epidemic prevention and control, as well as resumption of work and production,” said a notice republished by state broadcaster CCTV.

Businesses should prioritise the loading and unloading of stranded trucks, the notice added.

Chinese port workers are routinely tested for COVID-19, and the affected worker had been fully vaccinated. It remains unclear how the member of staff contracted the virus, the report wrote.

The terminal handles a fifth of the container volume at Ningbo-Zhoushan, which is the third busiest in the world and China’s second-largest container port.

Chinese media outlet Caixin reported that vessels were facing their worst levels of congestion in seven years during suspended operations.

China’s major manufacturing ports such as Ningbo-Zhoushan and Yantian have been impacted by COVID-19 throughout summer 2021, placing increased strain on already stretched supply chains.

https://www.porttechnology.org/news/ningbo-zhoushan-container-terminal-resumes-operations/