The Chinese Cruise Hub - with Italian support

Photo: Fincantieri

The Chinese Cruise Hub - with Italian support. The Trieste-based shipbuilding conglomerate Fincantieri and the Baoshan District, Shanghai, have partnered to set up a hub tasked with promoting the cruise industry in China.

Within the Chinese Cruise Hub the parties will jointly work on both promoting and marketing cruise tourism among the local population as well as on building cruise ships on-site (today, the overwhelming majority of cruisers is being delivered by European shipyards, some 89% in 2017).

Specifically, the Baoshan District will provide financial, tax, commercial, and administrative benefits, along with the necessary land for development as well as other resources to attract companies, also foreign, to take part in developing the Chinese cruise market.

The establishment of the hub follows a $1.5b-big deal struck in February 2017 between Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding (SWS), a subsidiary of the China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), Fincantieri, CSSC Cruise Technology Development (CCTD), and CSSC Carnival Cruise Shipping, a joint venture between CSSC and Carnival Corporation, for the delivery of two cruise ships.

The first vessel is expected to be delivered by SWS in 2023. Fincantieri and CCTD will grant a technology license of the ship model platform and provide a series of technical services to the Chinese shipyard, including project management activities, supply chain management, and sales of fundamental systems and components of the ship. The contract also includes an option for four more vessels.