A computer generated image of Dongjiakou Harbor.

Dongjiakou Harbor is expected to open at the end of this year, three to five years ahead of the original anticipated opening.

Work on the harbor district, construction on basic facilities and attracting investment has been going well. A 400,000-ton-capacity wharf and two general berths will go into operation at the end of this year.

Construction on basic facilities, including a bulk cargo and liquid chemical wharf, a main fairway and east and west bulwarks, is going ahead.

Approved by the National Development and Reform Commission, construction on Dongjiakou Harbor began in June 2009, and will eventually be built into a key part of Qingdao Port with an annual capacity of 370 million tons.

The 60.2-square-kilometer harbor is designed for 112 berths with a frontage of 35.3 kilometers and a navigable channel depth of 20 meters. Its wharfs will be able to serve 400,000 tons of cargo and will allow the biggest ships in the world to dock.

The annual capacity of the harbor is expected to reach more than 100 million tons by 2020.