CHINA BOOSTS DOMESTIC RO-PAX FLEET

Constructed by Guangzhou Shipyard International (GSI) to the account of the COSCO Shipping Group, the 43,200gt Ji Long Dao is based on a home-grown design engineered for a speed of 22.3 knots.

The vessel is being commissioned into northern service across the Bohai Strait, under the aegis of COSCO Shipping Passenger Transport. She is due to be joined on the Dalian/Yantai crossing later this year by a newbuild sistership from GSI.

Within main dimensions of 208m x 28.6m, Ji Long Dao is laid out with 360 cabins for 1,375 passengers and can carry a ro-ro payload equivalent to 2,800 lane-metres. She has assumed the title of the largest ro-pax in the Bohai Bay basin, where the ferry network forms a critical part of the regional infrastructure, and where inexorable economic growth drives demand for increased route capacity.

In a domestic context, the vessel has attained a new standard in passenger comfort, as regards interior design and facilities, and reportedly low levels of noise and vibration. Constructed under the supervision of the Guangzhou branch of China Classification Society, the new ferry was developed by Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute (SDARI) and applies ‘intelligent ship’ principles across multiple onboard operating, monitoring and management systems. Twin main engines make for a power concentration of around 28,000kW.

GSI also has two larger ro-pax vessels on order for the COSCO Group, each with capacity for 2,500 passengers and 3,800 lane-metres of freight.

The fleet developments on the domestic front augment the Chinese shipbuilders’ increasingly dominant position in the international market for ro-pax and ro-ro tonnage.

Further recent testament to the industry’s standing was provided by the handover in June of a dedicated ro-ro railcar ferry built by CSSC Huangpu Wenchong shipyard for Gulf of Mexico service, and reckoned to be the world’s largest train ferry. The 180m Cherokee is the first of a pair ordered by CG Railway of the USA for service between Mobile, Alabama, and Coatzacoalcos, Mexico.