chen rongsheng factory

HONG KONG, Nov 26 (Reuters) - China Rongsheng Heavy Industries Group, the country’s largest private shipbuilder, said its chairman had stepped down just three months after the company posted its sharpest fall in half-year net profit.

Zhang Zhirong quit to devote more time to his personal interests and will be replaced by the company’s chief executive officer, Chen Qiang, effective immediately, the company said on Monday in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange.

Listed in November 2010, Rongsheng was hit by an insider dealing scandal involving a firm owned by Zhang ahead of the $15.1 billion bid for Canadian oil firm Nexen Inc by China offshore oil and gas producer CNOOC.

Rongsheng said earlier this month that investment firm Well Advantage, controlled by Zhang, had agreed to pay $14 million as part of a settlement deal with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

In August, Rongsheng posted an 82 percent drop in half-year profit on a dearth of new orders and warned economic uncertainties would continue to weigh on the global shipping market.

As part of the changes at China Rongsheng, the company said that Zhang De Huang was retiring and had resigned as an executive director and as vice chairman of the board.

RUGAO, China/SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Deserted flats and boarded-up shops in the Yangtze river town of Changqingcun serve as a blunt reminder of the area"s reliance on China Rongsheng Heavy Industries Group, the country"s biggest private shipbuilder.A view of the Rongsheng Heavy Industries shipyard is seen in Nantong, Jiangsu province December 4, 2013. REUTERS/Aly Song

The shipbuilder this week predicted a substantial annual loss, just months after appealing to the government for financial help as it reeled from industry overcapacity and shrinking orders. Rongsheng lost an annual record 572.6 million yuan ($92 million) last year, and lost 1.3 billion yuan in the first half of this year.

While Beijing seems intent to promote a shift away from an investment-heavy model, with companies reliant on government cash injections, some analysts say Rongsheng is too big for China to let fail.

Local media reported in July that Rongsheng had laid off as many as 8,000 workers as demand slowed. Three years ago, the company had about 20,000 staff and contract employees. This week, the shipbuilder said an unspecified number of workers had been made redundant this year.

“Without new orders it’s hard to see how operations can continue,” said one worker wearing oil-spattered overalls and a Rongsheng hardhat, adding he was still waiting to be paid for September. He didn’t want to give his name as he feared he could lose his job.

“Morale in the office is quite low, since we don’t know what is the plan,” said a Rongsheng executive, who declined to be named as he is not authorized to speak to the media. “We have been getting orders but can’t seem to get construction loans from banks to build these projects.”

While Rongsheng has won just two orders this year, state-backed rival Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuildinghas secured 50, according to shipbroker data. Singapore-listed Yangzijiang Shipbuildinghas won more than $1 billion in new orders and is moving into offshore jack-up rig construction, noted Jon Windham, head industrials analyst at Barclays in Hong Kong.

Frontline, a shipping company controlled by Norwegian business tycoon John Fredriksen, ordered two oil tankers from Rongsheng in 2010 for delivery earlier this year. It now expects to receive both of them in 2014, Frontline CEO Jens Martin Jensen told Reuters.

Greek shipowner DryShips Inchas also questioned whether other large tankers on order will be delivered. DryShips said Rongsheng is building 43 percent of the Suezmax vessels - tankers up to 200,000 deadweight tons - in the current global order book. That"s equivalent to 23 ships, according to Rongsheng data.

Speaking at a quarterly results briefing last month, DryShips Chief Financial Officer Ziad Nakhleh said Rongsheng was “a yard that, as we stated before, is facing difficulties and, as such, we believe there is a high probability they will not be delivered.” DryShips has four dry cargo vessels on order at the Chinese firm.

Rongsheng declined to comment on the Dryships order, citing client confidentiality. “For other orders on hand, our delivery plan is still ongoing,” a spokesman said.

At least two law firms in Shanghai and Singapore are acting for shipowners seeking compensation from Rongsheng for late or cancelled orders. “I’m now dealing with several cases against Rongsheng,” said Lawrence Chen, senior partner at law firm Wintell & Co in Shanghai.

Billionaire Zhang Zhirong, who founded Rongsheng in 2005 and is the shipyard"s biggest shareholder, last month announced plans to privatize Hong Kong-listed Glorious Property Holdingsin a HK$4.57 billion ($589.45 million) deal - a move analysts said could raise money to plug Rongsheng"s debts.

Meanwhile, Rongsheng’s shipyard woes have already pushed many people away from nearby centers, and others said they would have to go if things don’t pick up. Some said they hoped the local government might step in with financial support.

The Rugao government did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would lend financial or other support to Rongsheng. Annual reports show Rongsheng has received state subsidies in the past three years.

Trading of shares and all structured products related to the company was suspended pending clarification of “news articles and possible inside information,” Rongsheng said in filings to the Hong Kong stock exchange. The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday, citing Lei Dong, secretary to the Shanghai- based company’s president, that more than half of the employees laid off were subcontractors and the rest full-time workers.

Rongsheng shares slumped 10 percent yesterday after the company said some idled contract workers had engaged in “disruptive” activities by surrounding the entrance of its factory in east China’s Jiangsu province. China’s shipyards are suffering from a global slump in orders as a glut of vessels and slowing economic growth sap demand. Brazil and Greece accounted for more than half of Rongsheng’s 2012 revenue.

“Rongsheng’s move reflects the bad market,” said Lawrence Li, an analyst at UOB-Kay Hian Holdings Ltd. in Shanghai. “More small-to-medium sized shipyards, especially those that lack government support, may take the same actions or even close down.”

Rongsheng spokesman William Li declined to comment on the Journal report. Four calls to Lei’s office at Rongsheng went unanswered. Rongsheng Chairman Chen Qiang also declined to comment today.

Rongsheng had as many as 38,000 workers including its own employees and contract staff at the peak of the industry boom a few years ago, UOB-Kay Hian’s Li said.

China Rongsheng posted a loss of 572.6 million yuan ($93 million) last year, after three consecutive years of profits, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It had short-term debt of 19.3 billion yuan as of the end of 2012, the data show.

The shipbuilder targets new ship and offshore orders worth more than $2.3 billion this year, Chen said in Hong Kong in March. The shipbuilder pared about 3,000 employees last year as it aims to return to profit this year, he said at the time.

Rongsheng received orders to build a total of 16 Valemax vessels from Brazilian miner Vale SA and Oman Shipping Co. and had delivered 10 as of April. The commodity ships, among the biggest afloat, are about twice the size of the capesize vessels that have traditionally hauled iron ore from Brazil to China.

The company’s cash conversion cycle, a gauge of days required to convert resources into cash, more than doubled to 582 last year from 224 in 2011, the data show. China Rongsheng shares have fallen 15 percent this year in Hong Kong, compared with a 11 percent decline for the benchmark Hang Seng Index.

Since Beijing appears intent on telling investors it is serious about changing the investment-led growth model of the world’s second-biggest economy and controlling a credit splurge, it may seem like the writing is on the wall for China Rongsheng Heavy Industries Group.

Yet analysts say the government is more likely than not to judge that Rongsheng, which employs around 20,000 workers and has received state patronage, is too big and well connected to fail.

Supporting Rongsheng will not mean China’s economic reform plans are derailed, they say. Instead, it will mean reforms will be gradual and the government will cherry-pick firms it wants to support, which will exclude the small, private shipbuilders that have been folding in waves.

“Rongsheng is a flagship in the industry,” said Lawrence Li, an analyst with UOB Kay Hian in Shanghai. “The government will definitely provide assistance if companies like this are in trouble.”

Analysts say Rongsheng is possibly the largest casualty of a sector that has grown over the past decade into the world’s biggest shipbuilding industry by construction capacity. Amid a global shipping downturn, new orders for Chinese builders fell by half last year. In Rongsheng’s case, it won orders worth $55.6 million last year, compared with a target of $1.8 billion.

Rongsheng appealed for government aid on Friday, saying it was cutting its workforce and delaying payments to suppliers to deal with tightened cash flow.

In the prospectus for its initial public offer, Rongsheng said it received 520 million yuan of subsidies from the Rugao city government in the southern province of Jiangsu, where the company is based.

The state funds paid for research and development of new types of vessels, and were based in part on the “essential role we play in the local economy”, Rongsheng said.

As the world’s largest shipbuilder, it had 1,647 shipyards in 2012, data from China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry showed. Over 60 percent of its shipbuilders are based in Rongsheng’s province of Jiangsu.

Despite this, the government is providing support for the industry, a sign it will also support Rongsheng given its prominence in the sector, analysts said.

Analysts say what separates Rongsheng from many other companies are its connections with the government and state banks. Rongsheng’s Chief Executive Chen Qiang, for example, enjoys “special government allowances” granted by China’s cabinet, the firm’s annual reports say.

Rongsheng also said in its IPO prospectus that it has two five-year financing deals with Export-Import Bank of China that end in 2014 and in 2015, and a 10-year agreement with Bank of China starting from 2009.

After all, local government coffers will suffer the biggest blow if Rongsheng goes bust. The firm had 168 million yuan of deferred income taxes in 2012.

The No 4 dock at Jiangsu Rongsheng Heavy Industries Co Ltd"s Nantong shipbuilding base on May 26, 2012. With a dimension of 139.5*580m，the dock is equipped with a 1600-T gantry crane, the world"s largest. [Photo/chinadaily.com.cn]

China Rongsheng Heavy Industries Group Holdings Ltd, the nation"s largest private shipbuilder, may seek "cooperation with one or two ship builders" in 2013 or 2014, grasping the opportunity emerging from an industry recession, according to Xu Yifei, assistant president of Jiangsu Rongsheng.

In response to this round of recession, Rongsheng has been actively upgrading technology and design. It has also put more focus on the offshore engineering sector to further diversify its business.

Rongsheng is setting up its offshore engineering company in Singapore, aiming to take advantage of Singapore"s technology and existing market to deepen its penetration in the global offshore engineering market, according to Xu.

The company entered the marine engineering sector years ago. China"s first deepwater pipe-laying crane vessel, known as Hai Yang Shi You 201, was built by Rongsheng. The vessel can lay pipes at depths of 3000 meters and lift 4000 metric tons and will operate at the South China Sea"s Liwan 3-1 gas field.

Rongsheng"s president, Chen Qiang, said in an earlier interview that he hoped orders from marine engineering will make up about 40 percent of the company"s new orders this year.

Five years on, when his foreign counterparts visit his yard in Rugao city in Jiangsu province, they exclaim: "OIC!", a term they coined to describe Chen"s achievement as "only in China".

Since Beijing appears intent on telling investors it is serious about changing the investment-led growth model of the world"s second-biggest economy and controlling a credit splurge, it may seem like the writing is on the wall for China Rongsheng Heavy Industries Group <1101.HK>.

Yet analysts say the government is more likely than not to judge that Rongsheng, which employs around 20,000 workers and has received state patronage, is too big and well connected to fail.

Supporting Rongsheng will not mean China"s economic reform plans are derailed, they say. Instead, it will mean reforms will be gradual and the government will cherry-pick firms it wants to support, which will exclude the small, private shipbuilders that have been folding in waves.

"Rongsheng is a flagship in the industry," said Lawrence Li, an analyst with UOB Kay Hian in Shanghai. "The government will definitely provide assistance if companies like this are in trouble."

Analysts say Rongsheng is possibly the largest casualty of a sector that has grown over the past decade into the world"s biggest shipbuilding industry by construction capacity. Amid a global shipping downturn, new orders for Chinese builders fell by half last year. In Rongsheng"s case, it won orders worth $55.6 million last year, compared with a target of $1.8 billion.

Rongsheng appealed for government aid on Friday, saying it was cutting its workforce and delaying payments to suppliers to deal with tightened cash flow.

In the prospectus for its initial public offer, Rongsheng said it received 520 million yuan of subsidies from the Rugao city government in the southern province of Jiangsu, where the company is based.

The state funds paid for research and development of new types of vessels, and were based in part on the "essential role we play in the local economy", Rongsheng said.

As the world"s largest shipbuilder, it had 1,647 shipyards in 2012, data from China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry showed. Over 60 percent of its shipbuilders are based in Rongsheng"s province of Jiangsu.

Despite this, the government is providing support for the industry, a sign it will also support Rongsheng given its prominence in the sector, analysts said.

Analysts say what separates Rongsheng from many other companies are its connections with the government and state banks. Rongsheng"s Chief Executive Chen Qiang, for example, enjoys "special government allowances" granted by China"s cabinet, the firm"s annual reports say.

Rongsheng also said in its IPO prospectus that it has two five-year financing deals with Export-Import Bank of China that end in 2014 and in 2015, and a 10-year agreement with Bank of China <3988.HK> starting from 2009.

After all, local government coffers will suffer the biggest blow if Rongsheng goes bust. The firm had 168 million yuan of deferred income taxes in 2012.

On June 28, China Rongsheng Heavy Industry Group Holdings Co., Ltd. announced that the new construction machinery factory in Hefei Economic and Technological Development Zone was officially put into operation, and the first excavator was also successfully rolled off the line that day. With the commissioning of the new plant, in the future, construction machinery, as a growth point for new businesses, will also play an important role in the group"s diversified development and strengthening of the RMB business strategy.

On the 28th, relying on the front-end excavator to slowly drive off the production line also means that China Rongsheng Heavy Industry"s construction machinery sector has entered a stage of comprehensive development.

The new plant in Hefei is one of the production base projects of China Rongsheng Heavy Industry"s construction machinery sector. The production base is listed by the Anhui Provincial Government as a key construction project of the "861 Action Plan" and is a key promotion of the Hefei Municipal Government’s "Twelfth Five-Year Plan" The project, the excavator project covers an area of 850 mu. According to reports, the construction of the new factory has also created a new Rongsheng speed. From the official start of construction in November 2010 to the start of production on June 28, 2011, it only took more than 7 months. The 18-month assembly workshop construction cycle was shortened to 6 months, creating a miracle in the engineering construction of the same industry.

At the beginning of the establishment of China Rongsheng Heavy Industry, it was recognized that the risks of the shipbuilding industry fluctuate greatly with the economic cycle. The development of diversified industries with high added value and diversified profit growth is a good way to resist systemic risks. According to this strategy, and in response to the industrial planning policy of Anhui Province to build Hefei into the "Construction Machinery Capital", in March 2010, China Rongsheng Heavy Industry registered and established "Rongsheng Machinery Co., Ltd." (Rongsheng Machinery) in Hefei. ), mainly engaged in the manufacturing and sales of construction machinery. 10% of the planned listing and financing will be used in the construction machinery sector

In 2010, through the acquisition of Hefei Zhenyu, Rongsheng Machinery currently produces 16 types of hydraulic excavators and two types of hydraulic crawler cranes. While building a new production base, Rongsheng Machinery has also entered the pre-development stage and will replace the original The direct sales model was changed to an agency model and expanded to 10 companies, and the overall cooperation with financial companies was strengthened. Through the acquisition of Quanchai Group, the construction machinery sector has obtained a stable supply of engine parts. With the commissioning of the new plant, Rongsheng Machinery will enter a stage of comprehensive development. In the future, the new production base will have a production capacity of 30,000 excavators.

At the same time, the development of construction machinery business will also help China Rongsheng Heavy Industries develop RMB business and effectively resist exchange rate risks. Chen Qiang, president of China Rongsheng Heavy Industry, said that the company will vigorously expand its domestic shipbuilding and construction machinery business due to the continuous appreciation of the RMB against the US dollar.

At present, a considerable part of China Rongsheng Heavy Industries" orders are from overseas. Therefore, most of the shipbuilding contracts are settled in U.S. dollars, while the costs are calculated in RMB. How to effectively control exchange rate risks has always been the focus of China Rongsheng Heavy Industries. At present, China Rongsheng Heavy Industry has consciously increased its RMB settlement business. It is expected that with the full development of construction machinery, the group"s future income sources will also show a diversified trend, and the income of RMB and US dollars will be more balanced.

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(Reuters) Chinese conglomerate Zhejiang Rongsheng Holding Group plans to double capacity of a joint venture refining project to 800 Mbpd in 2020, two years after the first phase starts up, senior company officials said Thursday.

The project, a venture among private companies led by Rongsheng, is planning to start up the 400 Mbpd first phase in 2018, aiming to meet the group"s requirements for petrochemical feedstocks.

Rongsheng Heavy Industries Group Holdings Limited is pleased to announce the establishment of Rongsheng Offshore & Marine Private Limited (“Rongsheng Offshore & Marine”), the Group’s new offshore engineering base, in Singapore. The company will focus on research and development, marketing and “Engineering, Procurement and Construction” (“EPC”) projects in offshore engineering, drawing on Singapore’s superior industry advances and human resources. On the same day, Rongsheng Offshore & Marine also officially announces that it has secured an EPC contract for a 2,000-meter deepwater tender barge. With sound developments made in the high-end offshore equipment manufacturing field, the Group will seek to accelerate its all-round transformation into an offshore engineering service provider.

Rongsheng Offshore & Marine, a wholly-owned subsidiary of China Rongsheng Heavy Industries and registered in Singapore, is set to become a light asset, high technology and first class offshore engineering talent base. It will play an important role in the Group’s offshore engineering strategy; the sales team is positioned to help the Group to gain market share in the international offshore engineering market, and the operational team will help the Group to achieve greater breakthroughs by engaging in high-end operational activities such as research and development, EPC project management and international procurement.

Mr. Chen Qiang, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of China Rongsheng Heavy Industries, said: “The opening of Rongsheng Offshore & Marine marks an important milestone towards the Group’s goal to upgrade and transform into an offshore engineering service provider. Combined with the company’s new, innovative operating model and technological platform and Jiangsu Rongsheng Heavy Industries Company Limited’s (“Jiangsu Rongsheng”) strong manufacturing base, China Rongsheng Heavy Industries has gained access to the global market and can now make their presence felt in the high-end marine equipment manufacturing field. By improving efficiency and lowering cost through synergizing the Group’s various business areas, we are confident that we can build Rongsheng into a world-class offshore engineering brand.”

The project in question is an EPC project, covering Engineering, Procurement, Construction. Rongsheng Offshore & Marine is the general contractor, and Jiangsu Rongsheng is the manufacturer. China Rongsheng Heavy Industries is one of the few shipbuilders in China capable of undertaking an EPC project, and the winning of this tender highlights the technological and manufacturing strength of China Rongsheng Heavy Industries in the marine engineering field. It also demonstrates the recognition received by the Group in the international shipbuilding and offshore engineering industries.

Mr. Don Lee, Director and Chief Executive Officer of Rongsheng Offshore & Marine, has made great achievements in offshore engineering and commands a considerable reputation, having established extensive contacts and close cooperation with offshore rig owners and petroleum companies over the course of 40 years in the field. Prior to his appointment at Rongsheng, Mr. Lee served as an Senior General Manager at Sembcorp Marine’s subsidiary Jurong Shipyard, Senior Vice President of the Marketing of Sembcorp Marine,Director of Jurong Brazil, Director of Brazil Netherlands BV, and Director of PPL Shipyard.