Chu Kong Shipping Enterprises, a whole-owned subsidiary corporation of Guangdong Province Navigation Group (GNG) signed a cooperation contract with famous Norwegian ship builder Brodrene AA (BRAA) on Sept 19 in Nansha district, Guangzhou.

According to the agreement, the two parties will set up a joint venture company in Nansha district and cooperate in building a new-type of carbon fiber high-speed passenger ships.

Chu Kong Shipping Enterprises signs a cooperation contract with BRAA on Sept 19 to build a shipyard in Guangzhou's Nansha district. [Photo/southcn.com]

BRAA is a world leader in the construction of fast ferries made of carbon fiber composites. The shipyard is located in Hyen on the west coast of Norway and employs 110 skilled workers. It is known for pioneering the use of composite materials for fast ferry applications, first with fiberglass composites in the 1970s and today with carbon fiber composites.

The new project is considered as a significant move of GNG in exploring business opportunities brought by China's Belt and Road Initiative. It is also GNG's move to implement Guangdong's strategic layout of building advanced equipment manufacturing industry belt along the west coast of the Pearl River and contribute to the construction of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.  

In 2016, GNG worked together with BRAA and built two high-speed passenger ships. The ships, which were successively put into use in ports of Guangzhou and Zhongshan, got thumbs-up from local governments and transportation departments for their safety, energy saving and low emission.