Adora Flora City is in the shipyard of Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding in Shanghai in August. [Photo provided to CHINA DAILY]
Construction of China's second domestically built large cruise ship, Adora Flora City, is nearing completion, with 99 percent of the work done, a project leader said.
Wei Shengsheng, head of cruise ship programs at vessel maker Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding, said on Friday that the cruise ship has achieved several key milestones, including dry-dock block erection, full hull integration, in-dock floating and undocking, and a sea trial in May this year.
The vessel is currently in its final stage of completion, with various interior areas being handed over to the shipowner progressively.
The fully ready ship is scheduled to be delivered to the shipowner and operator, Adora Cruises, on Nov 6, Wei revealed.
"Over the next two months or so, our engineers and construction workers will complete the handover of all systems and sections on board, support the classification and statutory inspections, and assist the shipowner in training crew members to familiarize them with the operation of various facilities and equipment," he said.
Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding is a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corp, and a major construction contractor for the nation's domestically built large cruise ships.
Wang Jingjing, a senior researcher at Luoyang Ship Material Research Institute, another CSSC subsidiary, said that in order to support the construction of large cruise ships and address the industry's long-standing reliance on imports for core materials, her institute has set up a joint team with Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding to develop essential coating materials for cruise ships.
Leveraging the institute's established capabilities in materials research and development, performance testing and shipboard adaptation, the researchers focused on four core products required for cruise ship construction: decorative coatings, flooring primers and adhesives, and epoxy deck coatings.
"Our products are both flame-retardant and environmentally friendly. They can resist aging despite frequent cleaning and withstand corrosion from various substances," she said.
According to Wang, the breakthrough has enabled the vessel maker to break free from dependence on imported key consumables during construction, effectively reducing overall building costs, shortening material supply cycles and filling gaps in China's high-end cruise ship supply chain.
Adora Flora City is the second vessel to emerge from China's decade-long endeavor to independently build large cruise ships, which are recognized as the most difficult and sophisticated among all types of civilian ships to design and construct. Construction of Adora Flora City began in August 2022.
At the peak of construction, around 4,000 workers were aboard the vessel every day. For the sea trial, a team of 937 engineering and technical personnel from 12 countries was on board to check the performance of all systems.
Compared with the first domestically built large cruise ship, Adora Magic City, the second vessel boasts an optimized design and a larger size.
Measuring 341 meters in length, Adora Flora City is 17.4 meters longer than Adora Magic City. It weighs 141,900 metric tons—about 6,400 tons more than the first ship.
The new cruise ship also has 19 additional guest rooms, bringing the total to 2,130 rooms that can accommodate a maximum of 5,232 passengers. Its public areas are also larger than those on the first ship.
Once put into service, the vessel will adopt Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, as its home port. Guangzhou is also known as the "Flower City" due to its year-round spring-like weather and mild climate, which are ideal for flower cultivation.
