Chinese state-owned creditors and donors have bankrolled over 363 seaport-related projects and activities at 168 ports around the globe. The most heavily-financed ports include Hambantota International Port ($1.97 billion), the Port of Newcastle ($1.32 billion), the Autonomous Port of Kribi ($1.17 billion), the Port of Melbourne ($1.14 billion), and Haifa Port ($1.13) billion. 2024 and 2025 alone saw $614 million of new official sector financing commitments from China for new projects and activities across eleven global ports.
Chinese financing for global seaports is almost evenly split between high-income countries and low- and middle-income countries. 45.1% of its entire overseas seaport finance portfolio (worth $10.8 billion) supports 29 port locations across 20 high-income countries including Spain, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, and Brunei.
In addition to extending aid and credit for the construction, expansion, and modernization of seaport facilities, Chinese state-owned financiers often support the provision of port equipment monetarily, such as security scanners or cranes provided by companies like Nuctech or ZPMC. This analysis identifies $4.7 billion in financial commitments for seaport projects that include such equipment.
In addition to tracking confirmed commitments, this study identifies another $11.6 billion of pledged financing for potential or future projects at 30 ports, including Mongla Port in Bangladesh and Kisumu Port in Kenya. Also uncovered are seven new proposed port projects that fall outside the scope of this dataset but should be monitored, including Lobito Port in Angola, Sandino Port in Nicaragua, and Mubarak Al-Kabeer Port in Kuwait.
https://www.aiddata.org/publications/anchoring-global-ambitions