Far Eastern Plant Zvezda, China Shipbuilding & Offshore International Co., Ltd. (CSOC) and Qingdao Beihai Shipbuilding Heavy Industry Co., Ltd. (BSIC) signed a contract for the construction and delivery of a floating transfer dock facility for Zvezda shipbuilding complex, Rosneft says in its press release. The document was signed in the presence of the President of Russia Vladimir Putin and President of China Xi Jinping by Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin and President of China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC) Hu Wen Ming.
The 40,000t floating transfer dock will be created to ensure the construction of marine engineering facilities at the shipyard. The contract provides that the Chinese companies will develop the design documentation, manufacture the equipment, train the crew and conduct final trial of the barge in Bolshoi Kamen Bay located in the Far East of Russia.
The use of this technology is unprecedented for the Russian shipbuilding industry. The participation of Russian specialists at all stages of design and construction will ensure efficient integration into shipyard operations. At the same time, the unique expertise and experience of the leading Chinese shipbuilding company, CSIC, will mitigate the risks of project implementation.
Commenting on the agreement, Igor Sechin said, "The Agreement with China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation on high-tech equipment provision for Zvezda is another major step in the creation of the Russian Far East shipbuilding cluster, unique by world standards. We have made a strategic decision to develop an unprecedented industrial complex with leading edge equipment and technologies to help fulfill the shipbuilding requirements for the Russian Federation and to successfully compete in global shipbuilding markets. Interest of the industry leaders in the project demonstrates the potential and promising outlook of Zvezda. The first large unit of a ship being build at Zvezda shipyard will be finished by the beginning of September "
Zvezda Shipyard is established at the Far Eastern Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Center (FESRC) by a consortium of Rosneftegaz, Rosneft and Gazprombank. Pilot throughput for the shipyard will be provided by Rosneft that has signed an exclusive agreement with FESRC (Far Eastern Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Center) regarding placement of all orders for the manufacture of new marine equipment and vessels at its facilities, and contracts for design, construction and supply of two reinforced ice-class multi-functional support vessels. Nearly 100-meter long new vessels can operate in the extremely tough environment of Rosneft offshore projects in the northern seas. Another two supply vessels will be constructed additionally.
Rosneft puts all efforts to implement the shipyard construction project. To ensure brand new technologies of shipbuilding and marine equipment construction, the Company engages equipment that was not previously used at the Russian shipyards.
Established in 1999, CSIC is a leading state-owned business and one of China’s largest shipbuilding and ship repair groups. Its marine sector covers both naval and merchant ships and equipment manufacturing. It also designs, develops and manufactures a wide-range of non-marine products. CSIC is the only company in the Chinese shipbuilding industry listed on the Fortune Global 500 and is working to be a world class shipbuilder group.
CSOC is the trading arm of CSIC and has set up many branch offices worldwide. The main business of CSOC includes ship design, manufacture, repair, marine equipment, offshore engineering and equipment, naval ships and non-marine products.
BSIC was set up in 1898 and is now one of the largest shipyards of China. Its key focuses are designing, shipbuilding, repair and modification of vessels, construction of large steelwork, development and manufacturing of ships made of glass fiber reinforced plastic and overhead cranes. The annual production capacity is 2MM t of metal working.