As the Pinglu Canal enters its countdown to navigation, on June 22, authorized by the Maritime Safety Administration of the Ministry of Transport, the Guangxi Maritime Safety Administration announced the addition of the “Pinglu Canal Route” endorsement, specifying the route endorsement requirements. On the same day, a training session for instructors on the Pinglu Canal route endorsement and a promotional activity for the route endorsement were held at Guangxi Vocational and Technical College of Communications. This marks a critical step toward the canal’s navigation goal, forming a closed loop for the expectation of “ships on the river, people steering ships.”
According to the announcement by the Guangxi Maritime Safety Administration, the specific coverage of the Pinglu Canal route is: from Pingtang River Estuary in Xijin Reservoir Area, Hengzhou City, Nanning, via Luwu Town, Lingshan County, Qinzhou City, the main stream of the Qinjiang River, Maowei Sea, to Qinzhou Port.
The Pinglu Canal has a total length of approximately 134.2 kilometers, with three 5,000-ton-class double-line ship locks along the route at Madao, Qishi, and Qingnian. The navigation segments include various high-risk scenarios such as continuous bends, narrow channels, bridge area waters, tidal river sections, and river-sea confluence areas. Ships navigating the canal face multiple challenges, including dense traffic flow and the differentiated application of collision avoidance rules between maritime and inland waters. According to the “Regulations on Seafarers of the People’s Republic of China” and the “Rules on the Examination and Issuance of Certificates of Competency for Inland River Ship Crew,” the certificate of competency for crew members must specify the navigation area (route), and the holder must not serve beyond the scope of the navigation area (route) endorsement. Without obtaining the Pinglu Canal route endorsement, pilots cannot legally navigate ships within the Pinglu Canal.
Zhou Ai, Director of the Crew Management Division of the Guangxi Maritime Safety Administration, introduced that the “route endorsement” is a statutory component of the certificate of competency for crew navigating inland waters. The “Scope of Application” column of the pilot’s certificate of competency must clearly indicate the navigation area (route) they are endorsed to operate. This is both part of the crew’s competency qualification and a statutory proof of navigation authority. Previously, the list of routes in the Pearl River water system did not include the Pinglu Canal. The addition of the Pinglu Canal route and the implementation of route endorsements this time prevent the risk of “ships being navigable, crew lacking qualifications, and supervision lacking a basis.”
To ensure that qualified crew are available when the Pinglu Canal opens, the Guangxi Maritime Safety Administration has proactively established a route endorsement system. Training materials and examination question banks for route endorsements have been completed, and system debugging has been carried out. Following the implementation of the Pinglu Canal route policy, the maritime authorities will simultaneously open crew examinations and route endorsements.
Currently, Guangxi has 2 training institutions for seagoing ship crew and 8 training institutions for inland river ship crew, distributed in Nanning, Guigang, Wuzhou, Liuzhou, Laibin, Qinzhou, and other locations. The monthly training capacity is approximately 4,000 people, and the training resources can meet the demand for ship crew training.
All-media reporter Long Wei, Correspondent Mo Weihua, Zheng Qingxin
