This follows a jv signed between CSSC and Carnival Corp. in November 2014, to design and build cruise ships for the China and Asia markets at CSSC-owned Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding facility (SWS).
The vessels will be built at SWS on the basis of a technological platform licensed to the jv and to the shipyard by Fincantieri, although there are no details on when construction will start, the numbers involved or the size of the ships.
The Italian shipbuilding group will also provide specialized consultancy services and supply certain key components of the vessels to the jv and SWS.
'This new agreement highlights once again Fincantieri’s technical and technological leading position and it places us at the center of a project without equal in the world, supported directly by Chinese government in the form of a very ambitious project,' commented Fincantieri's ceo Giuseppe Bono.
'We are equipped to face the new international scenarios and we are selected today as a shipbuilding partner for the development of the cruise sector of a country which looks at this industry with great determination. The presence of our main customer ,Carnival Corporation, which will purchase the vessels covered by the agreement, is also of fundamental importance for the project’s success,' added Bono.
Michael Ungerer, coo of Carnival Asia, attended Monday's signing cermony.
Wu Qiang, president of CSSC, commented: 'Signing the cruise shipbuilding joint venture agreement with Fincantieri is another milestone event for CSSC, for the history and development of China’s cruise industry, as well as for the cooperation between China’s and Italy’s shipbuilding industry. Joining forces will give new vitality to the rapid growth of China’s and the Asian-Pacific cruise market. We look forward to working together with Fincantieri, Carnival, CIC (China Investment Corp.) and other strategic partners to strive for building and delivering China's first domestic large cruise ship.'
The signing took place in Shanghai between Bono, the president of CSSC and the chairman of CSSC Cruise Technology Development and of the SWS facility, Wang Qi.
According to the Chinese Ministry of Transport, the China market reached 1m passengers in 2015 and is expected to grow to 4.5m passengers by 2020, projecting China to become the world’s second largest cruise market after North America, and to 8-10m passengers by 2030 with double-digit growth per year.
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