China's fleet of very large crude carriers (VLCCs) will soon surpass the country's domestic needs if an expansion plan proceeds as expected, an official with China's leading shipping firm said.
Concerned that its reliance on foreign carriers could be disrupted during times of political volatility including wars, Beijing has been aggressively promoting the construction of its own fleet in recent years.
China owns 27 VLCCs, but the number could more than double to to 63 before 2010, far beyond the country's projected needs for 52 by that time, Kong Fanhua, a research manager with China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company (COSCO), said in remarks prepared for the China Oil Traders' Conference.
A VLCC can carry about 2 million barrels of oil and are widely used on international long-haul routes.
He said the country's overall oil shipping capacity will be enough to ship its crude imports in 2010 despite a projected shortfall in the number of smaller Suezmax carriers that will be needed that year. He said China's Suezmax carriers will stay unchanged at six through then but there will be demand for 11.
A Suezmax can carry around 1 million barrels of crude.
China's fleet carried only 6.7 percent of the country's crude oil imports in 2000, but that share surged to 20 percent in 2005, according to Kong.
Concerned that its reliance on foreign carriers could be disrupted during times of political volatility including wars, Beijing has been aggressively promoting the construction of its own fleet in recent years.
China owns 27 VLCCs, but the number could more than double to to 63 before 2010, far beyond the country's projected needs for 52 by that time, Kong Fanhua, a research manager with China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company (COSCO), said in remarks prepared for the China Oil Traders' Conference.
A VLCC can carry about 2 million barrels of oil and are widely used on international long-haul routes.
He said the country's overall oil shipping capacity will be enough to ship its crude imports in 2010 despite a projected shortfall in the number of smaller Suezmax carriers that will be needed that year. He said China's Suezmax carriers will stay unchanged at six through then but there will be demand for 11.
A Suezmax can carry around 1 million barrels of crude.
China's fleet carried only 6.7 percent of the country's crude oil imports in 2000, but that share surged to 20 percent in 2005, according to Kong.