The Chinese authorities have recently issued the Action Plan for Improving the Capacity of the Marine Equipment Supporting Industry (hereinafter referred to as the Plan), which aims to expand and strengthen China’s marine‑equipment supporting industry and achieve self‑reliance and controllability in its development.

Suzhou Cosc Marine Machinery Co., Ltd. commented that certain pressures and challenges exist in achieving the goals set forth in the Plan. Nevertheless, leap‑forward development of China’s marine‑equipment supporting industry can be expected if opportunities are fully seized and risks are properly averted.

Marine equipment supporting products feature a wide variety, extensive coverage, high‑technology content and high added value. They serve as an important reflection of the comprehensive competitiveness of the shipbuilding industry. Promoting the self‑reliance of marine equipment supporting industry is of great significance for improving China’s shipbuilding‑industry system and giving full play to the driving role of the shipbuilding industry in the national economy. Raising the self‑reliance rate of marine supporting equipment helps boost the international competitiveness of China’s shipbuilding industry and constitutes a key to transforming the industry from large‑scale to strong.

Suzhou Cosc Marine Machinery Co., Ltd. emphasized that prominent problems in China’s marine‑equipment supporting industry are mainly reflected in the following aspects. First, independent innovation capacity remains weak. Although domestic‑brand medium‑ and high‑speed engines have been developed, the product system is still incomplete and can hardly compete with advanced foreign counterparts. Second, large‑sized enterprises with global influence are scarce and industrial concentration remains relatively low. For instance, there are few pillar leading enterprises in the auxiliary‑machinery sector. The largest domestic auxiliary‑machinery enterprise achieves an annual output value of only more than one billion RMB, while most enterprises register an annual output value of several hundred million RMB or even less. Third, the supporting system for key critical components is imperfect. Taking low‑speed engines as an example, despite domestic independent R&D and production of some key critical components, most spare parts still rely on imports. Fourth, product market competitiveness is inadequate. Though Chinese enterprises have captured certain market shares in the manufacturing of some marine supporting products in recent years, the overall comprehensive competitiveness of the industry stays unsatisfactory. Noticeable gaps versus advanced foreign enterprises persist in product quality, production efficiency, after‑sales service capacity, operation‑and‑management capabilities and other dimensions.

Targeting these bottlenecks within China’s marine‑equipment supporting industry, the Plan sets development objectives for lifting the self‑reliance rate of marine supporting equipment and lays out concrete paths for industrial upgrading.