CHONGQING, May 8 -- A 10,000-tonne-class sea-going vessel arrived in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality on Wednesday, becoming the first ship of its size to sail into the upper reaches of the Yangtze River.

The Innovation 5, carrying over 5,000 tonnes of food, departed from Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in the eastern coastal province of Zhejiang on April 24.

It traveled via the Chongqing-Zhoushan river-sea direct route, which links directly the municipality in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River with the sea.

During its voyage, the recently designed ship passed through the Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydropower project, in the upper stream of the Yangtze.

Due to draft requirements, it is difficult for 10,000-tonne-class ships to pass through the dam.

Thanks to the Chongqing-Zhoushan river-sea direct route, the transportation time between harbors in Chongqing and Ningbo-Zhoushan Port has been shortened by about 20 days compared with traditional river-sea intermodal transportation.

  - Xinhua