On December 18, the main hull of China’s first ultra-deepwater scientific research vessel designed for deep-sea drilling to 10,000 meters, an ocean drilling vessel independently designed and built in China, was structurally joined.
The vessel was designed by the 708 Research Institute of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) and is being built by Huangpu Wenchong, marking a key step forward in the construction of major equipment for China’s deep-sea exploration sector.
The vessel is expected to be fully completed in 2024. Once finished, it will mainly undertake ocean scientific drilling missions under major national science and technology projects and international large-scale science programs, serving as an important equipment platform for national deep-sea strategic science and technology capabilities, advancing deep-sea science and technology, comprehensively improving the capability to understand, protect and develop the ocean, and supporting China’s development as a maritime power.
A major national asset supporting maritime development
The ocean drilling vessel belongs to the China Geological Survey of the Ministry of Natural Resources. It has a design displacement of 42,000 tonnes, unrestricted global operating capability, and the ability to drill in ocean areas at depths exceeding 10,000 meters.
The drilling vessel has two operating modes, oil and gas drilling and ocean scientific drilling, and supports both riser and riserless drilling. It is planned to carry 10 categories of advanced shipboard equipment, forming nine laboratories covering all fields of ocean research, and will be the first to be fitted with paleomagnetic and ultra-clean laboratories built to leading international standards. Its overall equipment and integrated operating capability are at a world-leading level.
A precision-built vessel
Construction of the ocean drilling vessel began on November 30, 2021. Over the course of one year, fabrication and erection of the main hull structure were completed and the hull was joined. Subsequent work will include superstructure erection, equipment installation and commissioning, and quayside trials.
The vessel’s design and construction focus on solving major resource and environmental science questions of the deep earth, and have brought together a large coordinated research and construction effort and a deep-sea science and technology innovation system.
Through the joint efforts of more than 150 organizations in China and abroad, and using integrated innovation and modular design, 56 key technology research programs were carried out. More than 10 key technologies were mastered, including comprehensive optimization of hydrodynamic performance and modular layout of the operating systems, and a drilling and production system was integrated comprising two major control systems, eight categories of operating systems including core collection, and more than 30 subsystems.
