Wärtsilä, SDARI Join Forces
Wärtsilä's Ship Design unit has entered into a cooperation agreement with Chinese ship design house Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute (SDARI). SDARI is a part of the China State Shipbuilding Corporation group (CSSC). The agreement was signed in December 2015 and will cover the designs for various types of vessels for the offshore oil and gas industry. There is also the possibility to extend this cooperation to other vessel types as well. The agreement provides a means for the two companies to combine their strengths in order to provide customers with a better value proposition. The joint collaboration will give customers access to the industry's most extensive ship design portfolio combining both the Wärtsilä and SDARI offerings.
Cruise Lines Spend Big, Get Quirky to Lure Chinese Travellers
Looking to convince Chinese tourists that a ship can be a holiday destination and not just a way to get there, the world's leading cruise lines are spending billions of dollars on flashy new vessels and quirky on-board services. Carnival Corp and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd are trying to pique interest with China-centric attractions such as a menu inspired by an ex-president. They are also tapping a national penchant for education with classes ranging from foreign languages to silver service. Drawing cruise lines to China is the prospect of $11.5 billion in sales come 2018 compared with $6.8 billion last year, according to researcher Euromonitor. The market will soon be the second-biggest and could eventually surpass the United States, industry executives said.
China Yard Awarded Bulk Carrier Design Contracts
China Shipping Industry (Jiangsu) Co., Ltd. (CICJS) has signed design contracts for 64,000 dwt, 82,000 dwt and 105,000 dwt bulk carriers with Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute (SDARI). CICJS says that through strengthening cooperation with SDARI, CICJS will further its independent research and development abilities, and will also participate in part production design work of the series of bulk carriers. China Shipping Industry Co., Ltd. was founded in 1998 and is a subsidiary company of China Shipping (Group) Company.
A More Powerful Chinese Navy?
According to a report in the Taipei Times, Chinese President Hu Jintao urged the building of a powerful navy that is prepared "at any time" for military struggle, state media reported yesterday. At a meeting of delegates to a Chinese Communist Party navy forum on Wednesday, Hu reportedly said China was a major maritime country whose naval capability must be improved. "We should strive to build a powerful navy that adapts to the needs of our military's historical mission in this new century and at this new stage," he said in comments splashed on the front pages of the party mouthpiece People's Daily and the People's Liberation Army Daily. "We should make sound preparations for military struggles and ensure that the forces can effectively carry out missions at any time," said Hu.
Report: China Wants to Bolster Naval Power
The Chinese president, Hu Jintao, has called on top military commanders to build a powerful navy, the state media reported as China continues to spend heavily on a modern, blue-water fleet. In a speech to navy officers attending a Communist Party meeting Wednesday, Hu said China was an important maritime nation and the navy should be ready to protect the country's interests at any time, according to reports. His comments also reinforce the views of senior Chinese military officers who argue that China needs a navy that can deploy far from the country's coastline to protect its huge maritime, trade including crucial imports of oil and raw materials. China has a fleet of more than 50 submarines, including modern Russian and domestic designs, that could pose a major threat to U.S.
China Joins CSI
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security today announced that the People's Republic of China formally joined the Container Security Initiative (CSI). U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Robert C. Bonner and Mu Xinsheng, Commissioner of the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China, today signed a declaration of principles in Beijing, formally initiating joint efforts to target and pre-screen cargo containers shipped from the ports of Shanghai and Shenzhen destined for U.S. ports. "CSI is an essential element of the layered security strategy of the United States," said Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge.
