Fincantieri to set up a joint venture in China

Fincantieri and China State Shipbuilding (CSSC) have started a joint venture aimed at benefitting from the growing Chinese cruise industry.

The joint venture will design and sell cruise ships exclusively intended for the Chinese and Asian market. The vessels will be built at one of CSSC’s shipyards.

Fincantieri will provide specialised consultancy services and supply certain key components of the vessels to the joint venture and to SWS.

According to the Chinese Ministry of Transport (MOT) the cruise market in China expanded significantly in the last years, reaching one million passengers in 2015.

The growth potentials are estimated in 4.5 million passengers by 2020, projecting China to become the world’s second largest cruise market after the US, and in eight to ten million passengers by 2030 with a double-digit growth per year. If this trend is confirmed, the Chinese market is expected to become the first overall.