The naming ceremony of "CHINA FORTUNE", the 206kDWT new generation green Newcastlemax bulk carrier built by SWS for Chinese Maritime Transport Ltd (CMT) was held at SWS on March 30, 2013.
Mr. Tung Chee-hwa, Vice Chairman of CPPCC National Committee, Mr. Lin Feng-cheng, Vice Chairman of Central Committee of Kuomintang (KMT); Mr. Chen Yunlin, Former President of Association for Relations Across the Tainwan Strait (ARATS), Mr. Hu Wenming, Chairman of CSSC, Madam Weng Tiehui, Vice Mayor of Shanghai; Mr. John YK Peng, Chairman for CMT and Mrs. Peng, and other more than 100 honored guests attended the ceremony.
Founded by Mr. C.Y. Tung, father of Mr. Tung Chee-hwa and father-in-law of Mr. John YK Peng in Shanghai in 1946, CMT was ever one of the biggest shipping companies in the world and had a decisive influence in Taiwan and international shipping circle. CMT is not only an internationally famous shipping company for its professional shipping operation and high professional ethics but also is a solid and reliable partner of CSSC.
The rapid development of the shipbuilding industry of the mainland and the shipping industry of Taiwan Province in recent years has provided many opportunities for more extensive economic communication and cooperation at various levels across the Strait. As Mr. Han Zheng, Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Secretary of the CPC Shanghai Municipal Committee said when he met with Mr. John Chiang, Vice Chairman of Central Committee of KMT, with the smooth development of the cross-Strait relations and the closer interactive communication in recent years, the exchanges between Taiwan and Shanghai are also becoming more and more frequent and now there are many Taiwan compatriots living and working in Shanghai. Following the requirement of the central authorities, Shanghai is fastening its transformation of innovation and actively improving the quality and efficiency of its economic development. Friends from Taiwan are welcome to join us to achieve win –win cooperation and make contribution to the promotion of the exchanges between Shanghai and Taiwan and the further development of the cross-Strait relations.
Mr. Huang Yongxi, Chairman of SWS, in his speech said that H1219 is the last one of the series of five vessels ordered by CMT at SWS and therefore the naming ceremony is of milestone significant for the mutual cooperation, that with the joint efforts of both sides, four vessels have been delivered standing the test of wind and waves and that SWS will make efforts to continue improving its management and enhancing the quality and HSE control of shipbuilding and look forward to the further cooperation in the future. Finally Mr. Huang expressed his special thanks to the superintendants of CMT, the surveyors of ABS and the workers and technical personnel from the shipyard for their hard work and contributions during the construction of H1219.
In his speech, Mr. John YK Peng fully affirmed the high quality of this vessel, delivered his appreciation to SWS staff for their hard work and also looked forward to the communication and cooperation with SWS in the future. He announced that CMT would order another three 180k DWT bulk carriers at SWS to enhance the partnership and friendship between CMT and SWS.
"The win-win cooperation and common development across the Strait conforms to the historical trend as well as is the earnest expectation of the people on both sides of Taiwan Strait.” said Mr. Lin Feng-cheng, Vice Chairman of KMT Central Committee. He stressed that the naming of H1219 would be another best proof of the deep friendship between CMT and SWS and laid a solid base for the closer trade exchanges, As long as we stood together, with the wisdom and strength of Chinese people, the dream of turning China into a shipping power and a shipbuilding power would come true.
According to the speech by Mr. Hu Wenming on the ceremony, CMT is an internationally famous shipping company integrated with professional shipping operation and high professional ethics. In June, 2003, the first shipbuilding contract was signed between CMT and SWS, which kicked off the long-term profound friendship between them. In the past ten years, with the pleasant cooperation of both parties, we have delivered "CHINA PEACE","CHINA PROGRESS", "CHINA PRIDE" and "CHINA PIONEER" in sequence. “CHINA PEACE”, which was delivered in 2005, must be specially mentioned because as the first vessel built by a mainland shipyard for a Taiwan shipping company. She has opened a new era of the win-win cooperation between the shipbuilding circle and shipping circle across the Strait. More and more Taiwan shipping companies are welcome to order newbuildings in the shipyards of the mainland. Except for the products of bulk carrier, oil tanker and container vessel, we can also deepen our cooperation in other fields such as offshore engineering.
The main parameters of "CHINA FORTUNE" are: Length 299.92m, Molded Breadth 50m, Molded Depth 25m, Designed Draft 16.1m and Service Speed 15 knots. As an upgrade product of 170kDWT Cape-size bulk carrier, since brought to market on Oct. 15, 2009, the 206kDWT Newcastle bulk carrier has gained huge popularity. By the end of March 2013 SWS has received more than 50 orders of this type of vessel, becoming another hit product of the company and further solidifying the dominant position of SWS in the bulk carrier circle.
During the developing of the type of vessel, SWS conducted research on such aspects as main transport routes bulk cargo, the present condition and development trend of ore and coal transport, the present condition and competitiveness comparison analysis of bulk carrier and ore carrier fleets, large scale and adaptability trend of bulk carrier and the transportation cost of 200kDWT bulk carrier, and made a series of achievements such as the competition advantage of the traditional bulk carriers, the economy advantage of 200kDWT and 170kDWT bulk carriers and the market positioning advantage of 200kDWT bulk carrier.
The successful construction of the type of vessel has not only enhanced the self-development capacity of SWS on ultra large bulk carrier but also accumulated experiences on 250kDWT and 400kDWT VLOC under development.
According to the industry insiders, with the rapid increase of the bulk transport such as ore, it’s an inevitable trend to develop large bulk carrier of environmental and economy. Some experts have the opinion that the success of 206kDWT Newcastle bulk carrier right results from the trend. Therefore, it is expected to be a main ship form in the future and the market outlook may appear good.
In recent years, facing the severe challenges of the global financial crisis on the shipbuilding industry, SWS insists on the strategy of stable operation, focusing on technology and innovation management, and has maintained rapid, continuous and stable development. In 2011, the total shipbuilding output of the company exceeded 8 million DWT and topped the domestic shipyards for continuous 8 years. As a hit product, so far SWS has received near 200 orders of Cape-size bulk carrier and delivered more than 150 of them, which makes SWS a leading shipbuilder of Cape in the world.
