Shipping services provider V.Group is expanding its operations in China.
SeaTec, the technical services division of the global ship management company, has opened a second office in the country.
The Nantong-based facility has been established six years after the opening of a first office in Shanghai.
The move comes months after the company was awarded an International Manning License by the Maritime Safety Administration (MSA) by Chinese authorities.
The license allows V.Group to hire, train and deploy crew directly from China.
China was playing an increasingly important role in the global maritime industry, said Elliot Gow, CEO of Marine Services for V.Group.
“This new office has been opened in direct response to increasing demand for our services in the region,” he said.
“In fact, we are already having to recruit more staff to cope with the immediate demand we have seen.”
The new office will handle on-site supervision for repairs, conversions and newbuilds of vessels built or docking in Nantong.
V.Group has been expanding on several fronts in recent months.
In July, the company won a contract to manage three LNG fuelled VLCC’s newbuildings on behalf of US-owner International Seaways.
The vessels, which are under construction in Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME), will be taken under management by V.Group in the first quarter of 2023.
V.Group has also entered into a strategic partnership with Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping.
The centre's mission is to help find pathways to taking greenhouse gas pollution out of shipping.
