China Rongsheng Heavy Industries, the mainland's biggest privately owned shipbuilder, is aiming to win US$3 billion worth of ship construction orders this year, even with an influx of new tonnage set to enter the global merchant fleet in the next two years.
Chief financial officer Sean Wang Shaojian said the volume of the company's new orders so far this year was 'very good' despite a depressed shipping market.
'We've received new orders worth more than US$1.3 billion. Our order target is US$3 billion,' he said.
The new contracts include a package of deals announced at the end of last month for 14 vessels ordered by three European ship owners. The 14 ships comprise 10 dry cargo bulk carriers that will be able to hold 205,000 tonnes of cargo, and four 6,600 teu (20-foot equivalent unit) container ships, including two for Greek firm Dynacom.
The shipbuilder, which has its main shipyard at Rugao near Nantong in Jiangsu province, will deliver ships totalling around 5 million deadweight tonnes this year, double the 2.5 million dwt delivered last year.
'Next year it will be 7 million dwt. These numbers show our business is very strong,' Wang said.
He was commenting ahead of the naming on Saturday of the first of 12 400,000 dwt very large iron ore carriers China Rongsheng Heavy is building for Vale, the Brazilian mining company, under a US$1.6 billion order placed in 2008.