The Dalian complex will carry out the entire shipbuilding process - from cutting steel and engine assembly to block manufacturing, STX Group said in a statement.
The Dalian facility already has $3 billion worth of vessel orders, mainly for bulk carriers and pure car and truck carriers, or PCTCs, the group said.
STX Group said it expects to build about 24 ships a year in Dalian, located in northeast China, from 2009. STX affiliate STX Shipbuilding is the world's fifth-largest shipbuilder by order backlog.