US vessel BBC SATURN is the latest in a stream of foreign ships to berth at the Lyusi port area of the Tongzhou Bay demonstration area since its opening late last year. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

It was something of a red-letter day when the cargo ship BBC SATURN from the United States berthed on June 16 at the new 100,000-metric-ton general terminal in the Lyusi port area – located in the county-level city of Qidong administered by Nantong in East China's Jiangsu province.

The arrival of BBC SATURN marked the 38th foreign ship to be received there since it started operating late last year.

Regarded as a key part of the Tongzhou Bay demonstration area which is positioned to have a pivotal role in the national development strategy of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, the Lyusi port area has been very busy ramping up its operations since its opening. It chalked up handling its 38 foreign vessels over a period of just over five months.

The general terminal is designed for the loading, unloading and storage of break-bulk cargo such as wind power blades and towers, mechanical equipment and rolled steel, with a designed annual handling capacity of 7.5 million tons.

During the past five months since the opening of the Lyusi port area, the terminal has handled 71,000 tons of cargo, exported 413 pieces of wind power blades and 820 sets of modules and equipment.