A shipbuilding yard in Nantong. [Photo/Nantong Daily]

The number of ships built and repaired in Nantong, Jiangsu province, increased by 20 percent year-on-year in the first 10 months of this year to more than 300, statistics from the Nantong maritime safety bureau showed.

The number exceeds the total volume for the entire year of 2023.

Nantong is currently home to 26 large-scale shipbuilding enterprises, including flagship and leading companies such as Nantong COSCO KHI Ship Engineering, China COSCO Shipping Heavy Industry, and China Merchants Heavy Industry (Jiangsu).

The city also houses over 300 enterprises engaged in shipbuilding, marine engineering manufacturing, and related industries, with the market share of the shipbuilding and marine engineering industries accounting for approximately one 10th and one fourth of the national total, respectively.

To fully support the development of the shipbuilding and marine engineering industries, the Nantong maritime safety bureau is actively collaborating with shipbuilding enterprises in its jurisdiction, providing on-site services and professional guidance.

In the future, the bureau will fully support Nantong in building a world-class marine equipment and high-tech ship cluster by leveraging its maritime expertise to create optimal maritime administrative services and the best possible port and navigation business environment.