China Promotes a New Canal Route from the Aegean to the Danube

Chinese Dragon Year (credit: epSos.de)

Momentum is growing for one major infrastructure project in Europe, the Morava-Vardar-Axios canal, featured in the Schiller Institute’s Marshall Plan for the Balkans. The 650 km project would link the Danube River at Belgrade, in Serbia, through a canal between the Morava River in Serbia to the Vardar in FYROM, which flows into Greece where it is called the Axios, and then into the Aegean Sea at Thessaloniki. It entails the construction of 11 five stage locks along the way with 7 hydroelectric projects as well.

Contributed to HellasFrappe
By E.I.R. Strategic Alert

When built, it will shorten by 1,200 kilometers the inland water route to the eastern Mediterranean and shipping access to Asia via the Suez Canal.

Serbia commissioned a feasibility study on the project which was carried out by the Chinese state construction company, China Gezuba Corporation, which presented its preliminary results to Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic during his visit to China at the end of last year. The study has not yet been made public, but the Chinese are said to be prepared to invest up to 10 billion dollars in loans for construction.

The Hellenic Shortsea Shipowners Association (HSSA) announced its full support for the project.

The Chinese are already working to develop the transport corridor out of the Port of Piraeus, in Southern Greece, where they have leased the container port and turned it into the principal entry point for their exports to Europe. While most electronics and consumer products are now transported by truck from Piraeus into central Europe, the Chinese are now helping the countries along this corridor (No. 10) to construct the railways.

The canal, however, would facilitate exports by waterway of agricultural products from Eastern Europe and the Balkans to China, given that ship transport is the most efficient and cost effective means of transport. The agricultural potential of the countries in that region is totally under-utilized because of the insane cartel-dominated agricultural policies of the European Union. The Chinese have already increased their imports from these countries tremendously.