Vinashin expands with Chinese loans

Vietnam’s largest shipbuilder, Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (Vinashin), has obtained preferential loans from China amounting to $99.8 million to construct a large shipyard in the central region. Scheduled to become operational in 2008, the Dung Quat shipyard in the province of Quang Ngai will be able to build seagoing vessels up to 300,000DWT and repair ships up to 600,000DWT.

Vinashin signed the agreement with China’s Yunnan Machinery Import & Export Corp and the Shanghai Huayuan Investment& Development Company. Under the agreement, the two Chinese partners will act as the project’s engineering, procurement and construction contractor.

Vinashin said it is also embarking on two projects to laminate steel and make interior furnishing items for ships, and a feasibility study for manufacturing ship engines. It targets to build vessels with 60% of local content by 2010.

Last year, the shipbuilder earned $251 million from local sales and $71 million from exports.