Mega investment of 2 billion in Chinese yards

Hengli Heavy Industry’s new giant investment marks a new era for China’s shipbuilding industry, where the private sector is making a strong comeback, strengthening China’s global dominance in terms of capacity, technology and backlog.

In essence, Hengli Heavy Industry’s further expansion acts as a catalyst for a new phase of dominance for China’s shipbuilding industry, confirming that China is no longer limited to size and cost, but is systematically investing in the complexity of its shipbuilding projects.

The announcement of an investment of 13.5 billion yuan (about $2 billion) to further increase the production capacity of the Dalian shipyard comes at a time when, despite a slowdown in the global new orders market in 2025, China still controls the majority of global shipbuilding activity.

In just three years, Hengli Heavy Industry has managed to amass an extremely “heavy” order book, now accepting contracts with deliveries reaching deep into 2029.

Its clients include leading Greek shipowners, as well as liner giant MSC, an element that underlines the international acceptance of a private Chinese shipyard that until recently did not exist on the world map.

In the same context, the fact that Hengli became the first shipyard in the world to simultaneously launch four 306,000 dwt VLCCs, a demonstration of scale that was previously considered impossible.

Hengli’s development was based on the revival of the former STX Dalian facilities, which had been brought to a standstill. Today, the complex is on track to become the largest single shipbuilding site in the world.

The new “Future Factory” on Changxing Island, completed in just 153 days, covers more than two million square meters and can employ up to 50,000 workers when fully operational.

Its production range covers VLCCs, ultra-large containerships, LNG carriers and offshore engineering units, reflecting China’s shift towards high-value-added ships.

This strategy takes on even greater significance when considering the overall environment of the global shipbuilding market.

In 2025, the new order market declined significantly, with the total volume decreasing by 27% in CGT terms compared to 2024 (Compensated Gross Tonnage is a special unit of measurement for shipbuilding work used to calculate the actual volume of work required to build a ship).

Despite the decline, Chinese shipyards secured 63% of global orders, remaining first internationally, although for the first time in the last five years they recorded a loss of share.

In contrast, South Korean shipyards increased their orders by 8% year-on-year.

The comparison, however, reveals a different strategy. South Korea maintains a lead in high-tech ships, with almost twice the CGT per ship than China, reflecting its concentration in LNG carriers and other specialized vessels.

Nevertheless, China is steadily expanding its position in bulk carriers, tankers and containerships, while also closing the gap in LNG carriers, now openly challenging traditional Korean dominance.