The Port of Tianjin formerly known as the Port of Tanggu, is the largest port in Northern China and the main maritime gateway to Beijing. The name “Tianjin Xingang” which strictly speaking refers only to the main seaport area, is sometimes used to refer to the whole port. The port is on the western shore of the Bohai Bay, centred on the estuary of the Haihe River, 170 km southeast of Beijing and 60 km east of Tianjin city. It is the largest man-made port in mainland China, and one of the largest in the world. It covers 121 square kilometers of land surface, with over 31.9 km of quay shoreline and 151 production berths at the end of 2010.
Tianjin Port handled 500 million tonnes of cargo and 13 million TEU of containers in 2013, making it the world’s fourth largest port by throughput tonnage and the ninth in container throughput. The port trades with more than 600 ports in 180 countries and territories around the world. It is served by over 115 regular container lines. run by 60 liner companies, including all the top 20 liners. Expansion in the last two decades has been enormous, going from 30 million tonnes of cargo and 490000 TEU in 1993 to well beyond 400 million tonnes and 10 million TEU in 2012.Capacity is still increasing at a high rate, with 550–600 Mt of throughput capacity expected by 2015.
The port is part of the Binhai New Area district of Tianjin Municipality, the main special economic zone of northern China, and it lies directly east of the Tianjin Economic Development Area. The Port of Tianjin is at the core of the ambitious development program of the BNA and, as part of that plan, the port aims to become the primary logistics and shipping hub of North China.
Storage, transportation and all forms of logistics handling are the core activity of the Port, and beyond all question that the majority of its land surface is dedicated to storage and processing facilities, with several million km2 of storage yards, warehouses and tank farms operated by dozens of enterprises. There are two large-scale purpose-built logistics areas designed to provide support and facilities to the operating logistics outfits.
The chief logistics unit of the Port Group is Tianjin Logistics Development Co. , established in 2009 by consolidated the Tianjin Port Storage and Distribution Company with other Group logistics assets. TLD runs 1,800,000 m2 of storage yard, with a capacity for 32,000 TEU of containers, and is responsible for the establishment and management of the dry port network and the establishment of intermodal routes, as well as being the principal trucking provider.