Taizhou yards record improved shipbuilding figures

In the first seven months of this year, Zhejiang province’s Taizhou shipyards completed shipbuilding jobs valued at RMB3.61bn ($587.7m), up 8.08% compared to the same period of 2013, according to data from Taizhou city government.

In the second quarter of 2014, Taizhou yards completed shipbuilding contracts valued at RMB1.86bn, an increase of 10.58% year-on-year.

There are 49 shipbuilders in Taizhou, located across four main areas in the city. To-date, the Chinese yards sat on an existing orderbook of 893,600 dwt in capacity, and received 566,000 dwt in capacity of newbuilding orders, a surge of 356% year-on-year.

China’s shipbuilding sector is undergoing a consolidation phase to remove excessive capacity during a time when the global shipping market remains weak.

In Taizhou, the number of shipbuilders has shrank from 98 during the shipbuilding boom years to 49 today.

Meanwhile, China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry's president Zhang Guangqin, has recently urged Chinese yards to move up the value chain and streamline operations, at the same time refrain from capacity and asset expansion.