Chongqing- On December 2, the first inland fruit cold chain train of the China-Laos Railway started from Vientiane, Laos, heading for Chongqing, Southwest China, via Mohan Port, Yunnan Province. Once the train arrives at Chongqing Tuanjie Village Station, the imported fresh fruits will be distributed to various places. 

With a value of over 5.5 million yuan (about 0.78 million U.S. dollars), the train loads 25 refrigerated containers of fruits, including Thai longans and Lao bananas, marking the new cold chain fruit transportation route of the China-Laos Railway, Thailand-Laos-Chongqing.

The China-Laos Railway's first fruit cold chain train started from Vientiane, Laos, to Chongqing, China, on December 2. (Photo provided to iChongqing)

As one of the main organizers of the train, the New Land-sea Corridor Operation Co., Ltd. gave full play to its platform service functions and promoted the normalized operation of this cross-border cold chain train. The second China-Laos cold chain fruit train (Vientiane, Laos - Huaihua, Hunan) has completed the goods preparation. It is expected to leave on December 6, heading for Huaihua International Land Port, Hunan Province.

Before November 30, the designated supervision site for fruit entering Mohan Port of the China-Laos Railway successfully passed the acceptance of the General Administration of Customs. Fruit from Laos, Thailand, and other Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries will enter China through China-Laos Railway without truck transportation, further reducing logistics costs and improving transportation efficiency.

It's also worth mentioning that the day that the train started marks the first anniversary of the opening of the China-Laos Railway of the New International Land-sea Trade Corridor (ILSTC), while the train further promotes the integrated development of cross-regional logistics, industry, and trade. 

The opening day of the first fruit cold chain train marks the first anniversary of the opening of the China-Laos Railway of ILSTC. (Photo provided to iChongqing)

As a flagship project of the Belt and Road Initiative, the China-Laos Railway, which departs from Chongqing, can reach Vientiane, the capital of Laos, in four days via Yunnan Province, shortening the freight time by nearly 20 days compared with the traditional sea transport. 

Since the opening of the China-Laos Railway in December last year, it has narrowed the distance between China and ASEAN, reduced the logistics cost of cross-border transportation, and expanded the bilateral market.

In addition to Chongqing, other places, like Hunan, Ningxia, and Gansu, have also achieved the regular issuance of the China-Laos Railway. The integration and development of channels and industries have been accelerated, and the stability of the industrial chain supply chain has been boosted.

Thanks to the ILSTC, each node of the places along the line is connected to form a transportation network, which helps the cost reduction and efficiency increase to achieve coordinated regional economic development and smooth supply and industry chains.

(Tan Jingyue, as an intern, also contributed to this report.)