The Straits Times / The Business Times News on Cosco

Cosco unit secures orders worth $1.8b

COSCO Shipyard Group's Zhoushan unit has clinched new contracts to build 26 bulk carriers and four car and truck carriers.

These orders are worth about US$1.19 billion (S$1.82 billion) in total, said Cosco Corp yesterday. The group owns 51 per cent of Cosco Shipyard.

The 26 bulk carriers are of 57,000 deadweight tonnes each.

Of the bulk carriers, 14 will be delivered between August next year and March 2010. They have been commissioned by various shipowners from Turkey, Portugal, Greece and India, Cosco Corp said.

These contracts are worth US$525 million.

The rest of the bulk carriers, along with the car and truck carriers, are being built for Cosco International Ship Trading and its nominees. These are subsidiaries of China Ocean Shipping, the controlling shareholder of Cosco Corp.

The other orders, which will be delivered between December next year and October 2009, are worth US$669 million - about 155 per cent of Cosco Corp's net tangible assets.

This means these contracts will only become effective if Cosco Corp's shareholders approve.

The new contracts are part of Cosco group's plans to expand its shipyard operations, the group said.