Port of Oakland, CA, USA and China Merchants officials sign a Memorandum of Understanding, creating a Strategic Marketing Cooperative Agreement. Seated from left: Nelson Liu, Deputy Managing Director, CMHI; Pamela Calloway, First Vice President, Oakland Board of Port Commissioners, Port of Oakland; Omar R. Benjamin, Executive Director, Port of Oakland; and James Kwon, Maritime Director, Port of Oakland.

Oakland, Calif., USA -- November 16, 2010 --The Port of Oakland and China Merchants Holdings International Company Limited (CMHI) entered into an agreement to strategically market and develop supply chain solutions for U.S. exports, particularly agricultural commodities and perishable products. A delegation from the Port of Oakland, led by First Vice President of the Oakland Board of Port Commissioners, Pamela Calloway, participated in a signing ceremony held at China Merchants’ Hong Kong headquarters November 5, 2010.

Efforts will focus on enhancing warehousing and logistics facilities and creating seamless cold chain services for U.S. companies exporting their perishable products to China.

The Port of Oakland is the 3rd-busiest container port on the U.S. West Coast and the 5th-busiest in the United States. It serves as a premier gateway for U.S. food products such as fruit, nuts, vegetables, meats and wines exported throughout the world. The port is aggressively coordinating its activities with the National Export Initiative. The purpose is to expand the Port of Oakland's export cargo volume to help meet the U.S. government goal of doubling export volumes by 2015.

CMHI is a leading public port operator in China with a strategic network of ports in China's coastal regions, including the Bohai region, Yangtze River Delta, Xiamen Bay Economic Zone, Pearl River Delta, and the Southwest region. In the first six months of 2009, CMHI handled almost 25 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent container units) at its ports, terminals and logistics facilities throughout China.

“The form and scale of this partnership is a first for the U.S. port industry,” said Omar Benjamin, Port of Oakland Executive Director. “China is a significant and rapidly growing market for U.S. food and agriculture products, but the lack of cold chain services is inhibiting the export potential. Our initiatives will help make it easier, safer and faster to export U.S. commodities from California and distribute them throughout China.”

Recently, CMHI formed a joint venture, China Merchants Americold Logistics Co., Ltd. (CMAC), in partnership with U.S.-based Americold, one of the largest cold chain providers in North America. This venture solidifies CMAC as China’s premier third-party temperature-controlled logistics provider, operating an integrated nationwide platform across 15 cities in China.

The first activity of the Port of Oakland and China Merchants strategic partnership was the Cold Chain and Logistics Seminar on November 11, 2010 in Chengdu, in central China. It focused on the demand for U.S. products in the emerging markets of western China. Leading ocean carriers and logistics providers discussed distribution challenges in China's inland regions and provided best practices case studies. The seminar was co-sponsored by the Port of Oakland, the U.S. Foreign Agriculture Service, and the California Agriculture Export Council.

About the Port of Oakland
The Port of Oakland oversees the Oakland seaport, Oakland International Airport and 20 miles of waterfront. The Oakland seaport is the fifth busiest container port in the U.S.; Oakland International Airport is the second largest San Francisco Bay Area airport, offering over 130 daily flights; and the Port’s real estate includes commercial developments such as Jack London Square and hundreds of acres of public parks and conservation areas. The Port of Oakland was established in 1927 and is an independent department of the City of Oakland. Please visit: www.portofoakland.com.

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