[Photo/zhoushan.cn]

China's first 20,000-ton ship capable of navigating seas and rivers was delivered to Zhejiang Xinyihai Shipping Co on March 18. The first ship of its kind, a safe, efficient and green river-sea vessel, it will be launched on April 10.

The ship, named No 1 Jianghai Zhida, was constructed in accordance with "the Rules of Construction of Ships Capable of Navigating Seas and Rivers with Specific Routes" of the China Classification Society (CCS) and "the Provisional Rules of Statutory Inspection for ships capable of navigating seas and rivers with specific routes" of the China Maritime Safety Administration(China MSA). It was jointly researched by the Zhoushan and Changjiang River administrations of navigational affairs, designed by Zhejiang Xinhai Marine Designing Institute, and inspected by the CCS.

No 1 Jianghai Zhida is 154 meters long and 24 meters wide. It is capable of navigating seas and rivers, and is advanced and economical compared with similar exclusively seas-going ships. It was proved to reduce costs by about 10 percent, and is 12 more efficient than current river craft. A new designed collapsible mast allows it to sail under the Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge.

According to reports, the ship was launched on Dec 8, 2017, and successfully passed tests of speed, endurance, overall performance, and economical efficiency in a trial voyage lasting from Jan 25 to Jan 26 this year.

Zhoushan will build interconnected transport fleets of sea-river container and cargo ships, which can run from Zhoushan directly to Wuhan and Chongqing.