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Wärtsilä for Eight Chinese Bulk Carriers

Wärtsilä's two-stroke engines have been chosen for eight Chinese bulk carriers. The order was placed by Beijing-based Minsheng Financial Leasing Co. Ltd. Wärtsilä's Chinese licensee, Hefei Rong'An Power Machinery Co Ltd (Rong'An), a member of the Jiangsu Rongsheng Heavy Industries Group Co Ltd (RSHI), will build the engines. The Wärtsilä RT-flex58TB two-stroke engines will be installed in a series of eight 76,000 dwt Panamax bulk carriers. The first vessel is scheduled to be launched in March 2011. The bulk carriers will be built in Nantong, China by Rongsheng Shipbuilding & Heavy Industries, part of the Jiangsu Rongsheng Heavy Industries Group Co Ltd (RSHI). RSHI is a large and highly integrated heavy industries group whose business covers shipbuilding, ship repairing, steel structures, and engine manufacturing. The company runs China's third-largest shipyard and is the country's largest private shipbuilding group; its order book currently consists of 83 vessels. Equipped with two large dry docks, RSHI is able to build a wide variety of vessel types, including bulk carriers of Panamax size and larger, tankers from Aframax to VLCC sizes, LPG and LNG carriers, and containerships of 4250-9700 TEU.  In 2008, Wärtsilä signed a licence agreement with RSHI, the parent company of Rong'An, to manufacture Wärtsilä low-speed common-rail engines. At the end of 2009, Rong'An delivered its first 6-cylinder Wärtsilä RT-flex68B engine to Brazil's Log-In Logistica Intermodal S.A., and currently has orders for a further twelve 7-cylinder Wärtsilä RT-flex82T engines.  Wärtsilä will provide operator training for the ships' crew members. Training is an essential factor in the successful operation of ships' machinery, and Wärtsilä has a dedicated training facility in Shanghai that can also offer the courses in Mandarin language. The Wärtsilä facility boasts complete engine room machinery, among them a state-of-the-art control room simulator for the RT-flex engine, a rail unit section, injection control units, and a fuel supply unit to provide practical, hands-on training possibilities.(www.wartsila.com)