Chongqing city-based Chinese steelmaker Chongqing Iron and Steel has announced that it has inked a strategic cooperation agreement with Jiangsu Province-based Chinese shipbuilding company New Century Shipbuilding Co., Ltd (NCSC).
Dong Lin, president of Chongqing Steel, said that Chongqing Steel has been focusing on expanding its shipbuilding plate and medium plate production in recent years, and that accordingly it plans to strengthen its cooperation with NCSC with the supply of shipbuilding plates to the latter via the agreement in question.
In 2008, Chongqing Steel's production of shipbuilding plates reached 1 million mt, ranking 11th in China. In 2009, the overall output in the domestic shipbuilding industry saw a 24 percent year-on-year decline, while Chongqing Steel's shipbuilding plate output only registered a six percent year-on-year decline in the same year, ranking 5th in China. It is expected that the commissioning of Chongqing Steel's 4,100 mm wide plate production line last year will increase the company's output and help it to rank among the top three steelmakers in terms of output of shipbuilding plate in China in 2010.