Guangzhou, Guangdong – The Chinese province of Guangdong aims to complete a $2.4bn cold chain arterial network by 2022 to move frozen food around the province, said the local government.
The plans were drawn up earlier this year, and the details were made available to the public in June.
The network will hinge on a logistics centre in capital city Guangzhou, with 200kT storage capacity. There will also be matrix of smaller hubs, with 1.4MT combined storage capacity.
An additional 2,000 refrigerated trucks and 1,000 mobile precool units are also being planned as part of the scheme, said the government.
Currently, just 22% of Guangdong’s agricultural produce is transported along the existing cold chain, compared to 90% in developed markets such as the US and Europe. The province’s largest player in the sector is Guangdong New Co-op Tianye Cold Chain Group, which is ranked 15th nationwide.
Six projects within the network had been initiated by May, and 16 more were planned. The first six projects are likely to cost CNY246m ($35m), and by the end of the year a total of CNY1.6bn will have been spent.
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