China’s Jining Energy Development Group, through its Jining Tianhe Dahuai Supply Chain business unit, has awarded local company Shandong Xinneng Shipbuilding a contract for the construction of five container vessels capable of operating in inland waters.
The vessels will form the first batch of 29 containerships that will be built in fulfilment of a letter of intent (LOI) signed by Jining Tianhe Dahuai and Shandong Xinneng.
Each vessel will have a length of 90 metres, a beam of 16.56 metres, a depth of 5.4 metres, a deadweight of 5,000, and a range of 2,000 kilometres. Power will be provided by LNG-fuelled engines, thus helping ensure particulate matter emissions reductions of as much as 90 per cent.
A streamlined hull will meanwhile enable each ship to operate with reduced resistance, which will translate into greater fuel efficiency.
The two parties will later proceed with discussions regarding orders for the remaining 24 ships outlined in the LOI.
