CSCL has received the go ahead from its board for investment in a container terminal at Yingkou Port.

Cooperation on the Yingkou Port joint venture, said a CSCL company statement, will benefit both parties as container handling volume of CSCL at Yingkou has been growing rapidly.

Investing in Yingkou Port is in line with CSCL's strategy in expanding domestic business as Yingkou is the second largest domestic trading port with domestic container volume accounting for 90 per cent of the total, the statement said.

CSCL currently operates four domestic services in Yingkou with three 4,250-TEU vessels and one 5,600-TEU ship, including services between Yingkou-Huangpu, Yingkou-Quanzhou-Shantou, Yingkou-Zhangzhou-Jiangyin and Yingkou-Shanghai, the statement added.

Yingkou port, with 42 berths, was expected to handle 1.38 million TEU in 2007, a strong growth of 36.6 per cent year on year. It became the 10th 100 million tonne port in China in October.

The port on Liaodong Bay on the Bohai Sea is an important energy and raw material transit centre in northeast China as well as being the nearest seaport to cities central Liaoning province.