According to a report on RIA Novosti, Russian shipbuilding is undergoing a round of consolidation, and the aim apparently could be a shipbuilding giant, this following the sale of a significant share packet, a popular business daily, Biznes, reported. Biznes wrote that the IST Group's sale of 88.2% of the Baltiisky Zavod shipyard to the United Industrial Corporation meant a merger between Baltiisky Zavod and rival Severnaya Verf could happen in the long term. One source in reported that the deal was political, to complete a military order for two destroyers for China. The Federal Industry Agency called the deal an important stage in creating a single integrated organization in military shipbuilding.
