ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, January 9. A ceremonial keel-laying event marking the construction of Turkmenistan's first dry cargo vessel was held at the Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Yard Balkan, Trend reports.
The event was attended by senior officials from the shipyard, as well as Choi Yong Wook, President of the South Korean shipbuilding company Koryo Shipbuilding Industry Technology Co., Ltd. (KSIT), which is partnering with the facility on this project.
This initiative originates from a contractual agreement executed
in September 2023 between Turkmenistan and a South Korean
enterprise, encompassing the fabrication of two dry cargo vessels,
each boasting a capacity of 6,100 tons.
The dry cargo vessels will exhibit a length of 123 meters, a beam
of 16.5 meters, and a draft of 8.3 meters.
The first blocks of these vessels were delivered to the construction site on November 11, 2024. The project is a piece of the puzzle in Turkmenistan’s grand scheme to bolster its maritime and river fleets, putting the pedal to the metal on modernizing its shipbuilding industry.