Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding completes annual delivery in advance

China's first domestically made cruise ship conducts its first floating in the shipyard of Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding Co Ltd in December, 2021. [Photo/China News Service]

Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding Co, a unit under China State Shipbuilding Corp (CSSC), the world's largest shipbuilder, delivered "Proteus Stephanie", a crude tanker powered by LNG, to the financial leasing arm of China's Bank of Communications (BOCOM) on Nov 16.

It is the fourth 119,000-gross-ton vessel that was delivered by the shipbuilder to BOCOM Leasing and marked the completion of Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding's annual delivery goal a month and a half ahead of schedule. So far, the shipbuilder's output in 2022 has exceeded 3 million deadweight tons.

Independently developed by Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding, the LNG dual-fueled tanker is 249.95 meters long and 44 meters wide. It can sail at a speed of 14.5 knots and has earned accreditation certificates issued by two major ship classifiers, the United Kingdom-based Lloyd's Register and the Beijing-based China Classification Society.

This series of ships adopts a new linear shape with vertical bow and energy-saving devices, and its gas burning mode meets the NOx emission requirements of IMO Tier III.

It is also the sixth dual-fueled tanker that was delivered by Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding. There are eight more under construction. Therefore, this year ushers a new era for the shipbuilder's low-carbon ship manufacturing.

China's second domestically built cruise ship began construction on Aug 8, as the nation's shipbuilding industry has basically mastered core technologies in cruise design and construction.

Work on the interior and outfitting of the first locally made cruise ship is currently under way.