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Could Gwadar Port in Pakistan Be a New Gateway? A Network Simulation Approach in the Context of the Belt and Road Initiative

1
Department of Systems Innovation, School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan
2
PADECO Co. Ltd., Minato, Tokyo 113-0034, Japan
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Department of Civil Engineering, School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan
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Maritime Logistics and Free Trade Islands Research Center, Ocean College, Zhejiang University, Zhoushan 316021, China
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Sustainability 2019, 11(20), 5757; https://doi.org/10.3390/su11205757
Received: 20 August 2019 / Revised: 16 September 2019 / Accepted: 1 October 2019 / Published: 17 October 2019
(This article belongs to the Section Sustainable Transportation)
Central Asia (CA), comprising six independent countries and the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China (XUAR), is an archetypal landlocked region suffering from poor access to global markets. Possible gateway seaports for CA cargo are scattered across the Eurasian continent, and access requires long-haul transport. Thanks to their shorter hinterland transport distances, Pakistani ports, including Gwadar Port, which has drawn attention in the context of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, are investing a substantial amount in their infrastructure, with the aim of becoming the new gateway seaport for CA cargo. This paper aims to analyse the market potential of Gwadar Port and other Pakistani ports as gateways of the cargo to/from CA countries, including China and Russia, applying a two-layered network assignment model, developed from the perspective of shippers, under six scenario conditions. To overcome the lack of data availability in the region, surveys and interviews were conducted. The simulation results, based on several policy scenarios concerning the use of Gwadar Port, with hinterland connections and reduced border barriers, show that the port could handle a sustainable number of containers. If the hinterland rail network effectively connected the port to the CA countries via the XUAR, Pakistani ports could become gateways for CA cargo. View Full-Text
Keywords: Central Asia; gateway seaports; intermodal transport; container shipping; BRI; Gwadar port; Pakistan; network assignment; hinterland Central Asia; gateway seaports; intermodal transport; container shipping; BRI; Gwadar port; Pakistan; network assignment; hinterland
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MDPI and ACS Style

Shibasaki, R.; Tanabe, S.; Kato, H.; Lee, P.T.-W. Could Gwadar Port in Pakistan Be a New Gateway? A Network Simulation Approach in the Context of the Belt and Road Initiative. Sustainability 2019, 11, 5757. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11205757

AMA Style

Shibasaki R, Tanabe S, Kato H, Lee PT-W. Could Gwadar Port in Pakistan Be a New Gateway? A Network Simulation Approach in the Context of the Belt and Road Initiative. Sustainability. 2019; 11(20):5757. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11205757

Chicago/Turabian Style

Shibasaki, Ryuichi, Satoshi Tanabe, Hironori Kato, and Paul T.-W. Lee 2019. "Could Gwadar Port in Pakistan Be a New Gateway? A Network Simulation Approach in the Context of the Belt and Road Initiative" Sustainability 11, no. 20: 5757. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11205757

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