In the afternoon of 13th February, under the witness of Mr. Li Xiaopeng (General Manager of China Merchants Group ("CMG")), Mr. Su Xingang (Deputy General Manager of CMG), Mr. Tang Jun (Secretary of the Dalian Municipal Committee) and Mr. Xiao Shengfeng (Mayor of Dalian), Mr. Zhang Rizhong (Deputy General Manager and Financial Controller of China Merchants Holdings International ("CMHI")) and Mr. Zhang Zuogang (Deputy Managing director of Dalian Port Group) signed a strategic co-operation framework agreement on behalf of the respective companies, the company said in its press release.
The construction of Dalian Port started in 1899. It is the pivot of North-west Pacific, the centre of emerging North-east Asia Economic Zone and the region's gateway towards the Pacific and the World. In 2014, Dalian Port Group handled total cargo throughput of 351 million tons （including container throughput of 10.01million TEUs ), mounted top 10 ports in the world. In the same year, mega container vessel Morten Maersk made its maiden voyage to Dayao Bay Container Terminal, symbolizing Dalian Port position as a world class triple-E capable container terminal.
The strategic co-operation between CMHI and Dalian Port signified the further deepening of the friendly relationship and co-operation. The two parties will explore opportunities for multi-level and multi-area co-operation, based on the core port-related business, to support the development of Dalian into a North-east Asia maritime centre, and in turn deliver better returns for shareholders.