Beihai City in Guangxi has started constructing a branch railway line to link Tieshan port with the proposed Hepu-Hechun Railway, Xinhua reports.

The 20-kilometre branch railway line, a major supporting project for the Tieshan port industrial zone, will cost CNY200 million (US$25.78 million) to build and have an annual handling capacity of six million tons.

The railway line's connection to the Hepu-Hechun Railway will enable freight to be transported to Hechun, Maoming and Guangzhou.

The branch railway line will also be an extension for the Yulin-Hepu Railway, which will link up with the Nanning-Kunming Railway to the west.

It will also connect with other major railways to the north, including the Luoyang-Zhanjiang Railway, Guizhou-Guangxi Railway, Jiaozuo-Liuzhou Railway and Hunan-Guangxi Railway, the report added.