Brazil's Vale spends US$1.6 billion for ore ships
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hYcER-e...-bz11wD92B4HKO0
By ALAN CLENDENNING
8/3/2008
SAO PAULO, Brazil (AP) — Brazilian mining company Vale has placed a US$1.6 billion order for 12 huge iron ore carriers from China's Rongsheng shipbuilder, and the vessels will be the biggest of their kind in the world, Vale said Sunday.
Companhia Vale do Rio Doce SA said in a statement that the ships will be used to create a "dedicated route" to ship the company's iron ore from Brazil to Asia, a key market where iron ore is used as the main raw ingredient for steel production.
The ships, which Rongsheng Shipbuilding and Heavy Industries will build for Vale — the world's largest iron ore producer — will have a capacity of 400,000 deadweight tons each. The ship deal comes on top of a US$59 billion investment program through 2013 already promised by Vale.
The first of the ships will be delivered in 2011, and the order should be completed by 2012, allowing Vale "to reduce the cost of long-haul maritime transportation of iron ore to steel makers," Vale said in its statement.
When combined with other ships already used by Vale and additional ships on order, Vale's fleet will have the capacity of carrying 30.2 million metric tons of iron ore per year from Brazil to Asia. Most of Vale's Asian exports go to China.
Vale last month raised US$11.5 billion to fund operations and possible expansion by selling new stock in New York, Paris and Sao Paulo.
The company said at the time that the money could be used to finance it's US$59 billion investment plan, and would be dedicated to "general corporate purposes" — which could include "strategic acquisitions and increased financial flexibility."
Vale is the second-largest mining company after Anglo-Australian BHP Billiton Ltd. The company's American depository shares closed down 5.8 percent Friday in New York, or US$1.75, to US$28.28.
Congrats to China! 
Shipbuilder Cosco's Q2 jumps 60 pct, outlook stable
Mon Aug 4, 2008
SINGAPORE, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Shipbuilding and repair firm Cosco Corp (Singapore) (COSC.SI: Quote, Profile, Research), 53-percent owned by China's government, posted a 60 percent rise in quarterly profit on Monday, boosted by a booming ship repair and building business.
Cosco, controlled by the mainland's biggest shipping firm China Ocean Shipping (Group) Co, said it remained confident of its prospects for the full year.
The company said it has not been hit by any order cancellations for its new ships, after stocks of Singapore-listed shipbuilders including Cosco fell on Monday on news of order cancellations from Korean shipbuilders.
"People are concerned about what is happening in Korean shipyards. I'm glad to tell you we did not receive cancellations of newbuildings at present," Cosco President Ji Hai Sheng told a media briefing.
"In future, the situation could change but (parent) COSCO Group is doing quite well," he said, adding that the firm would not accept orders from smaller and financially weaker companies.
Despite the slowing global economy, Ji said Cosco would not slow down the expansion of its facilities, which would boost capacity 88 percent by early 2010, on a bright outlook for rigbuilding.
The Singapore-listed firm earned S$128.7 million ($94 million) in the April-June quarter, compared with S$80.4 million in the year-ago period.
Analysts are worried that shipbuilders such as Cosco will be hit by higher steel costs, which will have an impact on operating margins for the full-year.
The firm's sales of scrap materials during the period more than doubled to S$38.4 million from S$17 million a year ago, thanks to the soaring steel prices and as the firm takes on more ship conversion contracts.
Cosco is expected to post full-year mean net profit of S$479.8 million, up 43 percent for a year ago, according to 12 analysts polled by Reuters Estimates before Monday's results.
Second-quarter revenues doubled to S$1.05 billion from S$512.3 million a year ago.
Cosco said its order book stood at $7.4 billion in the second quarter, reflecting slower growth from the previous quarter as it has tightened its rules on the recognition of new orders. It now books an order only after it receives the downpayment
http://uk.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustry...lBrandChannel=0
Mon Aug 4, 2008
SINGAPORE, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Shipbuilding and repair firm Cosco Corp (Singapore) (COSC.SI: Quote, Profile, Research), 53-percent owned by China's government, posted a 60 percent rise in quarterly profit on Monday, boosted by a booming ship repair and building business.
Cosco, controlled by the mainland's biggest shipping firm China Ocean Shipping (Group) Co, said it remained confident of its prospects for the full year.
The company said it has not been hit by any order cancellations for its new ships, after stocks of Singapore-listed shipbuilders including Cosco fell on Monday on news of order cancellations from Korean shipbuilders.
"People are concerned about what is happening in Korean shipyards. I'm glad to tell you we did not receive cancellations of newbuildings at present," Cosco President Ji Hai Sheng told a media briefing.
"In future, the situation could change but (parent) COSCO Group is doing quite well," he said, adding that the firm would not accept orders from smaller and financially weaker companies.
Despite the slowing global economy, Ji said Cosco would not slow down the expansion of its facilities, which would boost capacity 88 percent by early 2010, on a bright outlook for rigbuilding.
The Singapore-listed firm earned S$128.7 million ($94 million) in the April-June quarter, compared with S$80.4 million in the year-ago period.
Analysts are worried that shipbuilders such as Cosco will be hit by higher steel costs, which will have an impact on operating margins for the full-year.
The firm's sales of scrap materials during the period more than doubled to S$38.4 million from S$17 million a year ago, thanks to the soaring steel prices and as the firm takes on more ship conversion contracts.
Cosco is expected to post full-year mean net profit of S$479.8 million, up 43 percent for a year ago, according to 12 analysts polled by Reuters Estimates before Monday's results.
Second-quarter revenues doubled to S$1.05 billion from S$512.3 million a year ago.
Cosco said its order book stood at $7.4 billion in the second quarter, reflecting slower growth from the previous quarter as it has tightened its rules on the recognition of new orders. It now books an order only after it receives the downpayment
http://uk.reuters.com/article/rbssIndustry...lBrandChannel=0
Goes to show that China has become a serious player in the shipbuilding industry. From LNG tankers to iron ore carriers. Congrats to China. Pakistan should learn one or two lessons from its neighbour.
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