China launched its first dual-use semi-submersible vessel on March 14, pushing the country’s integrated military-civilian development one step forward.

With a tonnage of 50,000, the vessel, Zhenhua 33, is designed to transport massive semi-submersible drilling rigs and watercraft on the ship’s deck. Its main deck is 7,700 square meters, with a fully loaded draft of 27 meters, Thepaper.cn reported.

Semi-submersible vessels have proven useful in the military. In 2000, the U.S. Navy hired Blue Marlin, a Dutch semi-submersible heavy lift ship, to move its destroyer, USS Cole, back to the U.S. after the warship was damaged by Al-Qaeda suicide bombers in a Yemen port.

“Technically speaking, semi-submersible vessels are transport ships. They are normally used for commercial purposes, but can also play an important role during wartime,” Liang Yongchun, a military expert, told Thepaper.cn. According to Liang, during times of war, military funds are normally used to construct new warships, while vessels responsible for logistical support including transportation and medical aid are normally expropriated from private companies. Thus, it’s important to build civil-use vessels in accordance with military standards.

In 2015, China approved the Technical Standards for New Civilian Ships, which imposes national defense requirements on civilian shipbuilders to ensure that their vessels are suitable for military use in case of emergency.

“The launch of Zhenhua 33 brings the integration of military and civilian technology one step further, which can significantly improve China’s strategic transportation capacity during wartime,” said Liang. He also noted that the technologies required to build dual-use semi-submersible vessels are advanced and complicated. Only a few countries in the world can design and produce such boats, including China and Norway.