COSCO wins big contracts

COSCO Corp (Singapore) Ltd has secured $563 million worth of ship conversion and shipbuilding contracts from undisclosed international customers. The projects, which include 10 conversions and the building of eight new bulk carriers, will be carried out at COSCO’s shipyards in China.

Each conversion will take between 160 and 180 days to complete, with progressive deliveries expected by the third quarter of next year. The bulk carriers are to be delivered from May 2009 to March 2010.

“Many of our contracts had been sealed with world-renowned global industry players,” said COSCO Corp vice chairman and president Ji Hai Sheng. “As we advance our shipyard competencies and enlarge our marine engineering earning base… we are pleased with the substantial progress made in diversifying our customer base of world-class corporations.” Ji said this has positioned the company for its “strategic leap into the global marine engineering playing field.”