An international ship is refueled at Zhoushan Port. [Photo/zhoushan.cn]

Zhoushan Port in Zhoushan, East China's Zhejiang province, surpassed Qingdao Port in Shandong province to become the largest oil and gas port in China in 2021.

Last year, the throughput of oil, natural gas and their products at Zhoushan Port amounted to nearly 133 million metric tons, a year-on-year increase of 3.9 percent.

Zhoushan Port boasts a superior geographical position due to its proximity to Ningbo, Hangzhou, and Shanghai. In 2016, Zhoushan Port merged with Ningbo Port to set up the Ningbo Zhoushan Port, which increased the bunker oil supply of Zhoushan Port to more than 1.06 million tons, ranking second in the country.

The oil and gas industry at Ningbo and Zhoushan Port saw robust growth in 2020 with its throughput of oil, natural gas and their products totaling 88.1 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 44.71 percent.

Over the past few years, central and provincial governments have also issued favorable polices to support the development of the oil and gas industry at Zhoushan Port.

In 2017, the China (Zhejiang) Pilot Free Trade Zone received approval to be established in Zhoushan. In 2020, the State Council published a paper to support the cooperation between the Zhejiang FTZ and the Shanghai Futures Exchange in futures and sport trading platform. In 2021, the Zhejiang provincial government launched a program to support the construction of an integrated market for oil and gas futures and sport trading in Yangtze River Delta.

Zhoushan Port has also been improving its infrastructure for oil and gas industry in recent years by building of pipelines, ships and wharfs for natural gas and bunker oil supply.