THE 98,000 deadweight tonne (dwt) double-hulled Vilomi Eira was built at one of the 27 yards operated by the China State Shipbuilding Corp (CSSC), which has become the mainstay of shipbuilding industry in China.
With 27 shipyards, 67 factories and 37 research and development institutes under its administration, the company is taking the lead in building and marketing a wide range of products, covering ships, offshore facilities, marine machinery and instrumentation, as well as non-marine products.
Ships are built for domestic and foreign clients.
Vessels totalling 840,000 dwt were constructed in the first eight months of this year, an increase of 55 per cent over the same period last year.
At the end of last year, China's shipbuilders had orders for vessels totalling 3.8 million dwt.
Of these, 1.2 million dwt are to be completed this year and 1.4 million dwt in 1994. Forty per cent of this year's production will be exported.