Chinese shipbuilding giants swap management, continue to deny merger plans
Beijing: State-owned shipbuilding conglomerates, China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) and China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC), have swapped top management, just two weeks after reports emerged of a potential merger between the two groups.
Former CSSC president Hu Wenming, has moved to CSIC as the new president, while former vice general manager of CSIC, Dong Qiang, has become the new president of CSSC. Li Changyin, former president of CSIC, is retiring and has quit the management role.
When contacted by Splash, a spokesperson for CSIC denied that the management swap is part of a potential merger plan.
“CSIC and CSSC have already been having close cooperation for years, it won’t have substantial changes if the two groups merge together, but it definitely will have a positive influence on the two group’s future development, “an official at CSSC-affiliated Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding told Splash.
Swapping top management between state-owned enterprises is common in China – the nation’s top two lines, Cosco and China Shipping, did exactly that four years ago.