The new ferry, named XIN HAI CHI, was constructed at Aulong’s shipyard in Zhongshan City and is the third ship to be designed and constructed for Blue Sea Jet since 2016. Austal Chief Executive Officer David Singleton said the delivery of the third ship to Blue Sea Jet confirmed Aulong’s position as a preferred shipbuilder by China’s leading ferry operators.

“Aulong has quickly developed a strong reputation for delivering China’s best high speed craft - drawing on Austal’s expertise in commercial ferry design and Jianglong’s local shipbuilding capability,” Mr Singleton said. “Our congratulations to Blue Sea Jet on this latest addition to their growing, impressive fleet.” Blue Sea Jet will operate XIN HAI CHI, with capacity for 272 passengers over two decks, in the waters of the Dawan District between Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macau.

Aulong Shipbuilding Co. Ltd (Aulong) is a joint venture between Guangdong Jianglong Shipbuilding Company (Jianglong Shipbuilding) of Zhuhai, China and Austal Limited. It was established in June 2016 with the aim of pursuing commercial passenger and non-military vessel opportunities in mainland China.

Austal (with 40% ownership) has licensed a number of its proven, commercial aluminium vessel designs for marketing throughout mainland China and construction at Jianglong Shipbuilding’s established facilities in Guangdong province. Jianglong Shipbuilding (with 60% ownership) brings local shipbuilding infrastructure, experience and expertise, with close to 1,000 employees across two shipyards supporting the joint venture.