On June 17-18, Fujian Shipbuilding Industry Group Corporation (Fujian Shipbuilding), COSCO Shipping Bulk and CITIC Financial Leasing jointly held a signing ceremony for ship construction contracts and ship leasing contracts in Fuzhou.
Chen Wei, Party Secretary and Chairman of COSCO SHIPPING Bulk, Shi Fuan, Deputy General Manager of COSCO SHIPPING Bulk, Li Gang, Party Secretary and Chairman of CITIC Financial Leasing, Zhao Jinjie, Party Secretary and Chairman of Fuchuan Shipbuilding, Huang Rutang, Deputy General Manager of Fuchuan Shipbuilding, and relevant leaders of CITIC Bank Fuzhou Branch attended and witnessed the signing ceremony. Heads of relevant units and departments and relevant personnel of the three parties also attended the event.
Pan Siwei, General Manager of Strategy and Corporate Management Department of COSCO Shipping Bulk, and Wang Kun, General Manager of Ship Business Department of CITIC Financial Leasing, signed the long-term ship lease contract on behalf of both parties.
According to previous reports, Mawei Shipbuilding, a subsidiary of Fujian Shipbuilding, will construct 30 80,000 DWT multi-purpose grain carriers with a total value of approximately RMB 10.8 billion (about US$1.5 billion). Each vessel will cost approximately RMB 360 million and is expected to be delivered between 2027 and 2028.
The suitability of cargo holds has been greatly improved by optimizing the vessel design. The 80,000 DWT multi-purpose vessel ordered by COSCO Shipping Bulk this time not only meets the requirements for grain loading, but is also suitable for shipping containers, general cargo, engineering equipment, general dry bulk and many other types of cargo.
COSCO Shipping Bulk said that this cooperation is an important measure of the company. Relying on the technical, cost and service advantages of Fujian Shipbuilding in the field of shipbuilding, and the strong innovation ability of CITIC Financial Leasing in the financial field, the company continues to promote the optimization of fleet structure, build a large fleet, and support “domestic vessels built domestically”. This move is conducive to accelerating the replenishment of high-quality grain transportation capacity, enhancing the global competitiveness of the company’s fleet, and improving China’s ability to transport important materials.