A vessel berths at the Jintang Port of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port. [Photo/Tide News]

The Cyprus-flagged container ship Irenes Southern departed from the Jintang Port of Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in East China's Zhejiang province on June 2 after completing loading and unloading operations involving 1,026 containers.

Under the supervision of Zhoushan Customs, the vessel set sail for countries and regions involved in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) — highlighting the port's uninterrupted operations during the Dragon Boat Festival holiday.

During the holiday period, a total of 15 vessels bound for BRI routes berthed at the Jintang Port, which handled 14,800 twenty-foot equivalent units of inbound and outbound cargo.

To ensure smooth customs clearance over the holiday, Zhoushan Customs proactively coordinated with terminals, shipping agents, and freight forwarders. The customs tracked real-time cargo and vessel information and implemented tailored supervision plans, ensuring timely inspections and vessel departures.

Zhoushan Customs has been extending its role in the BRI, enhancing its port services and streamlining its customs procedures. This includes piloting optimized dual-inspection models, integrating machine, and manual checks and expanding the use of smart security locks for efficient road transport customs transfers.

From January to April this year, Jintang Port recorded 73.27 billion yuan ($10 billion) in imports and exports with BRI countries and regions, up 46.9 percent year-on-year.