Italian luxury yacht maker opens new shipyard

Chairman of the Weichai Group and the Ferretti Group Tan Xuguang (third from right) cuts the ribbon on Friday in La Spezia with VIP guests, including Piero Ferrari, a member of the board of directors of the Ferretti Group and the head of the group's product development committee (second from right), Alberto Galassi, CEO of the Ferretti Group (first from right), and Pierluigi Peracchini, mayor of La Spezia (third from left). [Photo by Zheng Wanyin / China Daily]

Addressing the opening ceremony of the La Spezia production site, Tan Xuguang, chairman of the Weichai Group and the Ferretti Group, said the Weichai Group had strategically restructured the Ferretti Group, which was on the verge of bankruptcy at that time, not only saving the company but also safeguarding the livelihoods of more than 2,000 Italian families.

"The two sides have amazed the world with astonishing achievements and jointly created a model of win-win cooperation between Chinese and Italian enterprises," he added.

In 2022, the Ferretti Group was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and a year later, the group made its debut on Euronext Milan, becoming the world's first enterprise to achieve dual listing in Asia and Europe.

Alberto Galassi, CEO of the Ferretti Group, expressed appreciation for the support of the Weichai Group when contemplating the company's journey.

"When no one in Italy saw the Ferretti Group in difficulty and understood its potential, the only person who saw…comes from Shandong. Today, it's easy to tell the stories of the group, with the best results ever achieved," he said.