China’s shipbuilding industry will continue to lead the global race this year on the back of its supply chain growth, market expansion, and intelligent and green transition over the years, said analysts and industry sources. The industry has become adept at constructing all types of mainstream vessels, reflecting its versatility and innovative capabilities, they said. Orders for new ships across the global industry reached 41.49 million compensated gross tonnage (CGT) in 2023, according to Clarkson. Chinese shipbuilders took the lead with a 59% share of the global total, accounting for 24.46 million CGT, while South Korean shipbuilders accounted for 24%, amounting to 10.01 million CGT. South Korea’s shipbuilding industry trailed China for the third consecutive year in 2023.
The greatest strength of China’s shipbuilding industry lies in its capabilities, said Huang Jiantao, Analyst at the Shanghai Merchant Ship Design and Research Institute, a unit of China State Shipbuilding Corp (CSSC). Chinese shipyards have been expediting their shift toward green and intelligent shipbuilding while bolstering independent design and industry-supporting capabilities, especially in the areas of building liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, car carriers, core components and new materials, said Huang.
“In this market, efficiency is critical as shorter delivery times for vessels often attract more orders from shipowners,” said Zeng Ji, Professor of Shipbuilding at Shanghai Maritime University. China’s ship exports were worth USD24.4 billion in the first 11 months of 2023, up more than 21% year-on-year, data from the Beijing-based China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry showed.
Between January and November last year, China Merchants Heavy Industry (Jiangsu) Co, a Nantong-based shipyard, exported six ships, including polar expedition cruise ships and wind turbine installation vessels, with a combined value of nearly USD900 million. “With more orders, cost reductions become possible, enhancing the overall value of our production line,” said Shi Liechao, Manager at the sales unit of the company. China saw new shipbuilding orders surge nearly 64% year-on-year to 64.85 million deadweight tons (DWT) from January to November last year, taking up almost 66% of the world’s total during the period, data from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) showed. China’s shipbuilding output climbed more than 12% year-on-year to 38.09 million DWT, accounting for half of the world’s total, the China Daily reports.
