Port of Putian Marks First Anniversary of Giant Steel Tyre Shipping Route to Russia
According to Xinhua News Agency, the Jamaican-flagged vessel Dongsheng set sail from Puto Terminal within Xiuyu Port Area, Putian, after completing the loading of 293 full-steel giant tyres measuring between 3 and 4.03 metres in diameter. The departure marked the first full year of operation for the dedicated Putian–Russia shipping lane built exclusively for oversized engineering tyres.
Over its inaugural twelve months, the route has accommodated 23 cargo vessel calls and shipped more than 6,500 giant steel tyres to overseas markets. It stands as a vital maritime logistics artery linking Putian with Belt and Road partner economies, underpinning the city’s progress toward a 100-million-tonne deep-water port complex.
The oversized tyres manufactured by local Putian industrial firms rank first in domestic output and fourth across global markets for mass-produced heavy-duty engineering rubber goods. Each unit can support mining vehicles carrying loads of up to one hundred tonnes, maintaining stable performance in sub-zero climates for large-scale mining and infrastructure construction projects worldwide.
Prior to the launch of dedicated port access at Xiuyu, manufacturers routed all giant tyre shipments via Xiamen Port and Jiangyin Port in Fuqing, incurring substantial road haulage overheads. The new direct dedicated transport corridor cuts the road journey from production plants to the dock to forty minutes, slashing overall logistics expenditure by roughly 20 per cent and establishing a consistent direct maritime export channel.
Every giant steel tyre weighs between two and six tonnes with a diameter spanning three to four metres, presenting complex lifting and stowage challenges that once extended full vessel loading cycles to two or three days after berthing. Immigration inspection authorities in Putian have rolled out streamlined full-process clearance procedures for international vessels, including dynamic pre-inspection, instant examination upon arrival and immediate release after checks, paired with bespoke vessel-specific operational plans tailored to oversized cargo.
Port operators have refined lifting, yard storage and hold stowage workflows for bulky tyres, compressing complete ship loading work into a single calendar day. Maritime and border control departments exchange vessel and cargo data ahead of arrival, conducting joint boarding inspections and parallel operational procedures. Vessels commence cargo handling immediately after berthing with zero waiting time for formal clearance, accelerating outbound shipments of heavy industrial rubber products.
Port infrastructure upgrades continue to expand dedicated storage yards and heavy-lift handling equipment to cater to growing export volumes of oversized mining tyres. Integrated coordination between municipal manufacturing clusters, port operators and border regulatory bodies sustains consistent operational efficiency for all vessels calling the Putian–Russia tyre export route.
