Aulong Shipbuilding, a joint venture company between Austal and Guandong Jianglong Shipbuilding of China, has secured contracts for four high-speed ferries.
The business entity has been awarded contracts totaling AUD $20 million ($16m) to design and build four 42-metre high-speed catamarans for Xidao Dazhou Tourism.
The ferries will carry 399 passengers each, the Australian builder of defence and commercial ships said.
The joint venture, established in 2016, has "rejuvenated" Austal’s sales in mainland China with six new high-speed ferries ordered in 18 months, David Singleton-led Austal said.
“This AUD $20 million order is a great start to 2018, following our record sales in 2017 when we added eight commercial vessel orders wordwide, worth over AUD $380 million,” Singleton said.
He said he expects larger, more complex vessels will be required in the China market, prompting more orders in the next few months.
The company also plans to bring Chinese suppliers into its global supply chain, he said.
The ferries, which can travel faster than 20 knots, will operate from Xideo, a tourist island off Sanya City, in the Hainan Province.
Construction will commence from Aulong’s Zhongshan shipyard in Guandong Province in March 2018, with delivery scheduled for early 2019.
