IT'S been a year in the making since first signing a letter of intent, but Le Havre in France and China's Shanghai have now officially become twin port cities.
Far from being identical, the two estuary ports are of completely different size: the Port of Le Havre handled 75.6 million tonnes of cargo in 2005 and 2.1 million TEU, compared to Shanghai's gigantic 443 million tonnes and 18 million TEU.
In spite of the dramatic difference in throughput they are both leaders in their respective home markets for the container trade. To this end, the twin port status is seen as a means to strengthen ties between the two parties, which are described in a statement from the French port authorities as already being "very good".
Through this twinning agreement, the port communities of Le Havre and Shanghai expressed their will to cooperate on numerous issues and exchange expertise in the fields of port development and management, logistics, inland transportation, port construction, environmental protection and information technology.
The Port of Le Havre's experience of managing and building infrastructure projects, such as Port 2000, and in its involvement in restoring the biological functions of the estuary environment are said to be of great interest to its Chinese counterpart, particularly as authorities continue to develop the giant deep-water port of Yangshan.
The release added that a delegation from Le Havre attended the opening of the Yangshan hub that is dedicated to the container trade in December 2005. At this time, the representatives were able to identify ways to improve Yangshan's operating modes through the implementation of sophisticated technology solutions, and consequently solidify the twinning agreement.
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