BEIJING: Chinese government allowed Vale SA’s large vessels with a capacity of 400,000 tons to enter in Chinese ports, a circular of standards setting issued by Ministry of Transports stated.
The standards set a ship’s maximum length at 362 meters, width at 65.6 meters and height at 30.5 meters. The amount of cargo is capped at 403,844 tons. The government set the standards so demand for larger vessels could be met, the circular says.
The specifications are almost the same as those for Vale’s large ships, the person with knowledge of the matter said.
The ministry will relax restrictions on port capacities to correspond to the new standards, a researcher from Shanghai International Shipping Institute said, and will choose ports that can host the vessels.
Vale, a Brazilian producer of iron ore, has in recent years pushed to have its ships unload ore directly at China’s ports, but domestic shipping companies like China Ocean Shipping (Group) Co. have resisted the idea.
One large Vale ship, which had a capacity of 388,000 tons, docked in the northeastern port of Dalian in December 2011, but the government forced it to leave after domestic shippers complained.
In January 2012, the transport ministry prohibited Vale’s large ships from entering Chinese ports. It later ended a practice that allowed the ships to enter the country upon the completion of negotiations.
In response to the ban, Vale turned to Chinese shipping companies to bring its iron ore to the country.
On October 2, a large Vale ship named the Shandong Da Ren arrived in the eastern city of Qingdao with 300,000 tons of iron ore and left two days later. It was unclear if it was allowed to unload its cargo.
