Qingdao Marine Group was established to support Qingdao’s marine development strategy and promote key sectors of the blue economy.
Qingdao Guoxin
The Chinese state-owned conglomerate Qingdao Guoxin Development Group Co. has launched the procurement process to modernize its offshore aquaculture vessel, Guoxin No. 1.
Guoxin Ship (Qingdao) Ocean Technology Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of the group, has published an official tender notice seeking design services for the vessel's technical retrofit project.
The project has an estimated budget of RMB 1.8 million (approximately €232,000) and allows 30 calendar days for the completion of the design work following contract award.
According to official statements from the Qingdao Municipal Government, Guoxin No. 1, delivered in 2022, was China's first large-scale vessel specifically designed for offshore marine aquaculture.
The vessel was designed to help shift part of China's aquaculture production from coastal waters to deeper offshore areas. As the project has evolved, successive vessels in the series have incorporated improvements in energy efficiency, automation, and production capacity.
In June, COFCO International, a subsidiary of COFCO (China Oil and Foodstuffs Corporation), the Chinese state-owned enterprise and the country's largest agribusiness, announced that its Responsible Agriculture Standard (COFCO Standard) has been accepted under the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) certification programme.
This distinction is widely recognized in the seafood industry and sets strict requirements for aquaculture feed producers, including responsible ingredient sourcing.