China's Yangzijiang Shipbuilding enters into a joint venture agreement with Japanese Tsuneishi Holdings to acquire a 34% stake in Tsuneishi Group (Zhoushan) Shipbuilding
TSUNEISHI Group agreed with Yangzijiang Shipbuilding (Holdings) Ltd. (“Yangzijiang Shipbuilding”), a major Chinese private shipbuilder, to conduct a third-party allotment to Yangzijiang Shipbuilding of new shares of TSUNEISHI GROUP (ZHOUSHAN) SHIPBUILDING INC. (“TZS”), a wholly owned subsidiary of TSUNEISHI HOLDINGS CORPORATION (“THD”), according to TSUNEISHI's release.
TSUNEISHI Group and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding intend to use this third-party allotment of new shares of TZS as an opportunity to deepen their long-standing cooperative relationship and actively work to help realize decarbonization of the shipbuilding and shipping industries.
Over years both companies have cultivated various forms of cooperation primarily in the field of shipbuilding. In particular, Mitsui E&S Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. (“MES-S”), a TSUNEISHI Group company, has closely worked with Yangzijiang Shipbuilding in relation to JIANGSU YANGZI-MITSUI SHIPBUILDING CO., LTD. (“YAMIC”), a shipbuilding joint venture that has been owned and run by MES-S, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding and Mitsui & Co., Ltd. since 2019.
As MES-S became a consolidated subsidiary of TSUNEISHI SHIPBUILDING Co., Ltd. and joined TSUNEISHI Group in 2022, TSUNEISHI Group has participated in the management of YAMIC, through which the Group has further deepened collaborative relationship with Yangzijiang Shipbuilding. As part of this collaboration, TSUNEISHI Group and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding have joined forces to drive initiatives for decarbonizing marine fuels with the production of fuel tanks for LNG (liquefied natural gas) and other alternative fuels already started at YAMIC. Going forward, the two companies aim to pursue synergies with various related initiatives in progress including the development and in-house production of dual-fuel ships and pressure tanks having been led by TSUNEISHI SHIPBUILDING.
Yangzijiang Shipbuilding is a Chinese private shipbuilding group established in 1956, primarily engaged in shipbuilding and marine engineering. The company was the first SGX (Singapore Exchange) listed Chinese shipbuilding company. According to the 2023 global shipbuilding industry revenue rankings, Yangzijiang Shipbuilding is ranked 8th in the world.
TSUNEISHI Group was founded as a shipping business in 1903. With THD as its group holding company, TSUNEISHI Group has been engaged in the following five businesses : i) Shipbuilding business, which includes the construction of new ships, mainly bulk carriers, and the largest repair network in Japan; ii) Shipping business, which provides international marine logistics services; iii) Trading & energy business, which creates added value and contribute to local communities and society; iv) Environmental business, which aims to realize a recycling society through the recycling of waste materials; and v) Life & resorts business, which takes advantage of the Setouchi area and products unique customer experiences.
As the anchor company of TSUNEISHI Group, TSUNEISHI SHIPBUILDING primarily engages in shipbuilding and repairs. With manufacturing bases in Japan (Tsuneishi Factory, the HQ), Philippines, and China, the company builds bulk carriers, container carriers, tankers, etc. With its shipbuilding business revenues of 2,362 billion yen (for 2023), TSUNEISHI Group is ranked 14 in the world among major shipyards according to the 2023 global shipbuilding and marine industry revenue rankings by Kaiji Press.
Headquartered in Zhejiang Province, China, TZS is a TSUNEISHI Group company closely affiliated with TSUNEISHI SHIPBUILDING. Fully equipped with two shipbuilding berths and one building dock, TZS has versatile shipbuilding capabilities with a focus on 30,000- to 100,000-ton-class bulk carriers while also building container carriers, product tankers, and tug boats. In addition to its internal training system, TZS proactively partners with various educational institutions in the shipbuilding field to develop next generation talent who will lead the future shipbuilding industry.
MES-S is an engineering company focused on shipbuilding-related technology. With its core technologies of ship development, design and construction technology cultivated over 100 years and autonomous ship maneuvering and digitalization technology, MES-S contributes to solving the issues and needs of both society and clients related to maritime transportation, such as environmental load reduction, improvement of safety and working environment of ship’s crew, etc.
YAMIC is a shipbuilding joint venture established in August, 2019 between MES-S, Mitsui & Co., Ltd., and Yangzijiang Shipbuilding. To address an increasing demand for clean energy in China, YAMIC offers products that fully take into account local conditions of Chinese ports and rivers, and makes a contribution in the field of the transportation of energy-related products for China.
