Titan’s new yard able to hold largest ships

Singapore’s position as the world’s busiest port and ship-repair center is under almost immediate threat from China, which recently overtook Germany as the world’s third largest economy. When Singapore-owned, Hong Kong-listed Titan Petrochemicals completes its US$330 million shipyard in Quanzhou in the Chinese province of Fujian, at the end of 2009, it will be able to accommodate the biggest vessels in service now. While Singapore yards are capable of handling giant ships like the 397-meter Emma Maersk, none of its yards will be able to dry dock the vessel, currently the world’s largest container ship. But Titan Quanzhou Shipyard (TQS) is building a giant dry-dock measuring 420 by 68 meters, which will be able to take the Emma Maersk and most of the world’s other largest vessels. Together with three other dry-docks, the yard will have a combined handling capacity of about one million dead weight tons. Built on a 110-hectare site, the fully integrated yard is designed by the China State Shipbuilding Corporation in conjunction with industry experts from Japan and Singapore. Senior consultant to the shipyard is former Sembawang Engineering and Construction Group President Tan Mong Seng, who also advises the China Merchant Group on its facilities in Shenzhen. The state-of-the-art facility combines shipbuilding, ship-repair and offshore engineering in an efficient and seamless manufacturing system. (September 13, 2007)