Qingdao Customs promotes "step-by-step testing" of imported copper concentrate to ensure smooth supply chain
In the cold winter months, container vehicles are constantly shuttling in Qingdao Dagang Port Area, port gantry cranes are operating rapidly, and production operations are busy. Recently, after the "Chatham Islands" cargo ship carrying 21,000 tons of Peruvian copper concentrate successfully docked and unloaded, Qingdao Dagang Customs officers immediately carried out sampling according to the established sampling plan, and carried out on-site radioactivity testing and solid waste inspection.
Copper concentrate is a raw material in which copper-containing ores are effectively enriched for smelting through beneficiation processes such as flotation. It is mainly used for smelting copper. Copper is an important basic industrial raw material in my country and is widely used in electrical, machinery manufacturing, construction and other fields. The stable and efficient import of copper concentrate is crucial to the safety, stability and smoothness of my country's industrial chain and supply chain.
The value of imported copper concentrate is high. In the daily operations of enterprises, the backlog of copper concentrate funds accounts for a large proportion of operating costs. Therefore, the customs clearance logistics efficiency of imported copper concentrate directly affects the operating costs of enterprises.
According to the customs risk control operation specifications, imported goods that hit the control order generally need to be released after completing the inspection and inspection instructions. According to laws and regulations, the customs conducts access inspections on five harmful elements such as lead, arsenic, fluorine, cadmium, and mercury in copper concentrates. Only if they meet the access requirements can they be imported; quality items such as copper, gold, and silver are inspected according to the application of the enterprise. Issuing certificates and assisting enterprises in making external valuation claims.
The port under the jurisdiction of Qingdao Customs is an important import and distribution center for bulk resource commodities in my country. For a long time, Qingdao Customs, on the premise of ensuring strict supervision, has actively improved the efficiency of port inspection and release, carried out "micro-reform and micro-innovation" in the field of commodity inspection, and ensured the safety of the supply chain of key resource commodities. In order to further improve the efficiency of customs clearance at the port of imported copper concentrate, Qingdao Customs is exploring a pilot "step-by-step inspection" model for laboratory inspection of imported copper concentrate. This model will be promoted nationwide in customs from 2023.
"The 'step-by-step testing' model is to divide the laboratory testing items of copper concentrate into two categories: 'environmental protection projects' and 'quality projects'. After the customs conducts on-site inspections and detects no abnormalities in the 'environmental protection projects', the company is allowed to The goods are lifted out of the customs supervision workplace; if the enterprise applies for a quality certificate, the customs can conduct quality inspection and issue a certificate after the goods are lifted off." Li Zhaoxue, chief of the Fourth Inspection Section of Qingdao Dagang Customs, said.
The "step-by-step inspection" mode of copper concentrate effectively decomposes and optimizes customs control instructions. The "quality inspection" and "cargo lifting" operations of imported copper concentrate are changed from serial to parallel, which can greatly improve the efficiency of port inspection and release. , to ensure that the mandatory items are released as soon as they pass the test, and the quality items are tested and certified without any delay in the company's external claims.
In order to fully release the dividends of this policy, Qingdao Customs, while fully optimizing and implementing the laboratory inspection process of imported copper concentrates, conducted advance research and judgment to create a "one ship, one policy" supervision model for enterprises, adopting "pre-examination appointments before unloading, Pick up as you go during unloading, and send and inspect after unloading." We continuously optimize the operation process to achieve a seamless connection from order review to unloading, inspection, sampling, and testing.
The implementation of the "step-by-step testing" model has effectively shortened the customs clearance time for imported copper concentrates. Importing companies can more accurately control the procurement rhythm and delivery time, arrange logistics operations more scientifically, reduce logistics costs, and invest more funds. Used to upgrade equipment, improve processes and expand production capacity.
"Since the implementation of the 'step-by-step testing' model of imported copper concentrates, the storage time of our imported copper concentrates at the dock can be shortened by an average of 4 days, and the comprehensive warehousing and logistics costs per ton of cargo can be saved by an average of 12 yuan." Yanggu Jianfa Copper Industry Shan Zhenfei, manager of the port transportation department of the company, said that each batch of goods of the company is basically about 10,000 tons, and each batch can save more than 100,000 yuan in storage costs.
For the port, the rapid transportation of imported copper concentrate at the port can speed up the cargo turnover capacity of the port area and increase the overall operating capacity of the terminal. "The 'step-by-step inspection' model has effectively driven the rapid growth of the terminal loading, unloading and transportation business of Qingdao Port's copper concentrate sector, and also met the needs of domestic copper smelters." said Liu Junfeng, marketing manager of Qingdao Port Dagang Branch.
Since the "step-by-step inspection" model of imported copper concentrate was fully promoted and implemented one year ago, Qingdao Customs has inspected and supervised more than 4.3 million tons of imported copper concentrate, a year-on-year increase of 28%, saving enterprises a total of more than 40 million yuan in comprehensive logistics and warehousing.
