A bird's-eye view of Zhoushan Port in Zhoushan, Zhejiang province. [Photo/Tidenews]

Zhoushan, home to Ningbo Zhoushan Port, which is the world's top cargo handling port, has been the main force behind the high-quality development of the marine economy in Zhejiang province, according to the province's government work report in 2023.

In developing the marine economy and building a strong maritime province, Zhoushan is both the "main battlefield" and the "main force", said the report.

When reviewing the work done in 2023, the report mentioned Zhoushan’s achievement in speeding up major projects, introducing foreign investment in manufacturing, upgrading pilot free trade zones, boosting the development of Ningbo Zhoushan Port and building the integrated oil and gas trading market in the Yangtze River Delta region.

Looking forward to 2024, the report proposed Zhoushan continue on its development trajectory, and ensure the rapid progress of major projects such as the Jintang New Materials project.

The report also proposed increasing the container throughput of Ningbo Zhoushan Port by more than 4 percent, fully implementing policies such as tax refunds at departure ports, and actively developing high-end port and shipping services such as shipping finance, shipping transactions, and maritime law to enhance the international competitiveness of the port.

The report also proposed accelerating the construction of major collection and distribution projects at Ningbo Zhoushan Port and striving to build a modern transportation and logistics system.