Wuhan Qingshan Shipyard, after years of dormancy, is re-entering the mainstream of China's shipbuilding industry. Based on multiple government and industry sources, it has been confirmed that Qingshan Shipyard—now renamed China Merchants Industry Group Wuhan Qingshan Shipyard Co., Ltd.—has initiated a systematic project to restore shipbuilding capacity, with the goal of fully resuming its main shipbuilding business by 2026. This move is seen as a case study in how China Merchants Industry (CMI) is reviving idle assets along the Yangtze River during a new industry upcycle through a methodology of "integration–restoration–delivery."
According to disclosures from government channels, the shipyard’s restart is no longer in the discussion phase but has entered a stage of clear organizational planning and task breakdown. On February 9, during an inspection and symposium led by the Secretary of the Qingshan District Committee of Wuhan, the shipyard’s management publicly stated its intention to "leverage the full industrial chain resources of China Merchants Group, focus on building small and medium-sized high-value-added vessels, simultaneously advance the construction of a 'garden factory,' and plan to restore shipbuilding capacity by 2026." The local government responded with concrete support measures, emphasizing that it will provide resource guarantees and service mechanisms to facilitate the upgrade of this state-owned manufacturing base.
Qingshan Shipyard’s return is noteworthy due to its long-standing industrial foundation and rare riverfront location. Established in the 1950s, it was once a major civilian shipbuilding base in Hubei and central China. The shipyard exited new vessel construction in 2018 after completing its last orders and shifted to repair and steel structure manufacturing. Its path—from possessing large-scale newbuilding capacity to exiting during an industry downturn—aligns closely with the current trend of reactivating existing capacity in China's shipbuilding sector.
The shipyard boasts approximately 2,200 meters of waterfront space and is considered a large-scale facility along the Yangtze River. It is also reported to have the capability to construct vessels of up to 100,000 deadweight tons. Reviving such a mature base—with existing infrastructure, waterfront access, and supporting facilities—typically offers faster recovery and higher marginal efficiency compared to building a new facility from scratch.
Officials have emphasized that the shipyard’s revival will prioritize quality over scale, focusing on small and medium-sized high-value-added vessels. The plan also includes building a "garden factory" and establishing a high-tech, green, and intelligent shipbuilding base. This narrative addresses key market questions: why restart operations, what will be built, and how it differs from the past. The answer is a high-quality revival centered on green and intelligent transformation.
Production workshops have already begun restarting operations, with several new energy vessel projects underway. Order backlogs and production schedules are also being clarified. The shipyard is integrating resumption with technological upgrades, introducing automated welding and other digital technologies to improve efficiency and shorten key construction cycles. If orders and delivery schedules proceed as planned, Qingshan Shipyard will transition from asset reactivation to effective capacity utilization.
Beyond being a reactivation project, Qingshan Shipyard represents a strategic addition to China Merchants Industry’s growing network of shipbuilding bases, which includes facilities in Qingdao and Nanjing. This multi-base approach allows for flexible resource allocation across different vessel types, clients, and delivery timelines, while also mitigating risks related to production disruptions, environmental constraints, or supply chain issues.
In Qingdao, the group enhanced its capabilities in mainstream commercial vessels such as container ships and bulk carriers through acquisitions and upgrades. In Nanjing, it successfully revived a bankrupt shipyard, delivering its first stainless steel chemical tanker shortly after restructuring—demonstrating a rapid "integration–production–delivery" cycle.
Qingshan’s role differs in its focus on small and medium-sized high-value-added vessels and its strategic location in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. It is expected to specialize in new energy carriers, high-end chemical tankers, and vessels suited for inland and coastal routes—complementing Qingdao’s focus on mainstream commercial ships and reinforcing Nanjing’s strengths in chemical and gas carriers.
Together, these three bases form a coordinated "Yangtze River–coastal linkage" production chain: Nanjing offers mature facilities and chemical vessel expertise, Qingshan adds restored capacity in the midstream region, and Qingdao handles international orders for mainstream vessels. This structure enhances scheduling flexibility and improves alignment between production capacity and order profiles.
In recent years, China Merchants Industry has evolved from a specialist in niche vessel types to a broader-based green and intelligent shipbuilding platform. While it maintains strengths in ro-ro, passenger ro-ro, chemical, and gas carriers, it is expanding into mainstream commercial shipbuilding and strengthening its manufacturing presence along the Yangtze River Economic Belt. The reinforcement of the "CMI" brand aligns with this shift, supporting market recognition, financing, and customer confidence as the group expands its multi-yard, multi-vessel, and multi-client operations.