Ship of Chinese Shipping Giant Makes Maiden VoyageA new heavy cargo ship owned by Minsheng Shipping Co. Ltd, China's private shipping giant, left Chongqing port Wednesday on its three-day maiden voyage to east China's Jiangxi Province.The Mingsu, Mingsheng's second ship installed with steel rollers for moving heavy loads, was manufactured by Chongqing Shipping Manufacturing Plant. The five-story vessel is 85.5 meters long and can hold up to 400 automobiles. The ship was loaded with 310 automobiles for the first trip. "It is so far the fastest, best-equipped and largest multi-functional ship for roll-to-roll transportation of commercial cars on the Yangtze River," sources with the company said. Minsheng initiated roll-to-roll water transportation in 1999 along the Yangtze River and the coastal areas. Lu Guoji, president of Minsheng Industrial Co. Ltd, said at Wednesday's ceremony that Minsheng Shipping will continue to lead the developing trend in the transportation along the Yangtze. Minsheng, initially named Min Sung Company, was established in 1925 by the famous Chinese patriotic industrialist, educator and social activist Lu Zuofu. It was reopened by his son, Lu Guoji, in 1984. After hard-fought pioneering efforts, Minsheng has emerged as the largest private shipping enterprise in China with more than 30 subsidiaries and branches in major cities and ports alongside the coastal areas and Yangtze River. |
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