○ The Incheon Port Authority (www.icpa.or.kr, President Lee Kyung-kyu) announced on September 10 that President Lee Kyung‑kyu of IPA and Chairman Cao Ziyu of Hebei Port Group signed a memorandum of understanding on strategic partnership on September 9 in Qinhuangdao, China.

○ Founded in 2009, Hebei Port Group is the overarching authority responsible for the comprehensive management and operation of Qinhuangdao Port, Jingtang Port, and Huanghua Port.

○ The MoU is IPA’s first cross‑border partnership with a northern Chinese counterpart and will strengthen ▲ HIS (Incheon–Jingtang–Huanghua) container service* launched in July 2025 while dovetailing with ▲ Incheon–Qinhuangdao route, which will be served by a new-build car ferry** whose construction began in August 2025.

* HIS operates a 1.5 sailing-per-week with M/V SHAO YUN, a 600 TEU cargo ship managed by Hede International Shipping Limited.

** The new‑build car ferry, scheduled for construction between August 2025 and December 2026, will be capable of carrying 800 passengers and 340 TEU of cargo, with a deadweight of 30,000 tons.

○ The IPA and Hebei Port Group agreed to closely cooperate across seven areas, including ▲ establishing a strategic partnership, ▲ revitalizing the Incheon-Qinhuangdao car‑ferry route, ▲  promoting e‑commerce, ▲  supporting the shipping and trading businesses, ▲  developing an eco‑friendly international logistics hub port, and ▲ promoting marine tourism.

○ Following the signing ceremony, President Lee visited the Qinhuangdao Municipal People’s Government and met with Vice Mayor Han Kai to discuss boosting marine tourism via the car‑ferry route and ensuring the successful operation of the Sea & Rail multimodal logistics service.

○ President Lee Kyung-kyu also visited the construction site of the dedicated car ferry berth within the Qinhuangdao container terminal to review the progress of the new-build vessel project and discussed further cooperation plans. During the visit, he emphasized, “As this project marks a new turning point in marine tourism between two ports, I urge all parties to ensure its successful completion.”

○ President Lee added, “Strengthening ties between the IPA and northern Chinese ports is more important now than ever before. This MoU will expand exchanges between Incheon Port and Hebei ports, boost cargo and passenger traffic, and foster mutual growth.”

○ Meanwhile, as of 2024, the Incheon-Qinhuangdao car ferry operations handled a total of 43,559 TEU. Passenger operations are scheduled to resume in the second half of next year upon the completion of the new vessel.