Recently, the Tongjun, Asia’s largest trailing-suction dredger, completed registration and officially joined the fleet at China Yangpu Port in Hainan Province on the southern coast of the Chinese mainland.
With a mammoth 35,000-cubic-meter hold—equivalent to about 14 Olympic swimming pools—the Tongjun is the first mega dredger designed and built domestically. Dredgers like these act as giant underwater vacuums, clearing sand, mud and rocks to deepen shipping channels, build new ports and restore eroded coastlines.
For Hainan, a rapidly growing maritime hub, the Tongjun bolsters capacity for large-scale dredging projects. As global trade rebounds and shipping lines expand, deeper and safer channels are key to handling mega container vessels and reducing bottlenecks.
Beyond commerce, dredging serves as a frontline against climate change. By restoring beaches and reinforcing shorelines, dredgers support coastal resilience—vital for island regions and low-lying ports around the world.
Data snapshot:
- Capacity: 35,000 cubic meters hold
- Design & build: first domestically crafted mega dredger in the Chinese mainland
- Operational role: channel deepening, port construction, coastal restoration
As the Tongjun begins operations at Yangpu Port, industry watchers say its arrival highlights both the scale of modern maritime infrastructure and the strategic importance of sustainable port development—an essential piece in the puzzle of global supply chains and coastal ecosystems.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
