China's first Sino-foreign co-funded railway, the Shenzhen Pinghu-Nantou Raiway, built by seven foreign and domestic shareholder units at a total cost of over 400 million yuan, has recently opened.

Starting from Pinghu Railway Station on the Guangzhou-Shenzhen trunk route in the east, the new 50.2-km line stretches to Nantou Town of Shenzhen in the west, linking Shekou, Chi Wan and Ma Wan ports.

Co-financed by seven stockholders including the Merchant Development Co. Ltd. of Hong Kong, the Chinese Merchant Shekou Industrial District, the China Nanshan Development Co. Ltd. and the Guangzhou Railway Group Co., the line was built by the Pingnan Railway Co. Ltd. of Shenzhen. It is managed and operated under a shareholding system.

This has broken with the traditional practice of constructing railways by relying on investment from national and local authorities.