Honghua Group Starts Construction of Mobile Crane with Largest Lifting Capacity in the World

QIDONG, China, Oct. 23, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Honghua Group Limited (HK:0196), China's largest exporter of drilling rigs, announced that it will begin construction of the "Honghai Crane" at a ground-breaking ceremony today in Qidong City, Jiangsu Province, China. When completed, the "Honghai Crane" will boast the largest lifting capacity of any movable gantry crane in the world at 22,000 tons, making it 11 times more powerful than the next best movable crane. Originated by Honghua and co-developed with Wuhan Bridge Heavy Industries Group Co., Ltd., the "Honghai Crane" is a significant milestone in the evolution of offshore drilling platforms. 

The ground-breaking ceremony was attended by delegates from the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum. "The Honghua Group has again demonstrated that it is a leader in the oil drilling industry. The Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum has cooperated with the Honghua Group on several occasions and will continue to do so," said Ayman Mohamed Abdel Monsef, representative for the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum.

"With offshore engineering market growing tremendously around the world, innovative offshore drilling equipment will play a crucial role in harnessing and developing oceanic energy," said Mr. Zhang Mi, Chairman of Honghua Group. "In a technological and capital intensive industry, the "Honghai Crane" will revolutionize offshore drilling, and will set a new benchmark for offshore engineering building models."

The "Honghai Crane" boasts three major advantages:

• Product Manufacturing Innovation: The "Honghai Crane's" primary function will be construction of offshore drilling platforms. With a total height of 150 meters and maximum lifting height of 65 meters, it is able to lift 500 fully loaded high-speed train carriages or a building 20 floors high while moving. The "Honghai Crane's" innovative driving control system allows it to move quickly and safely while lifting a 22,000-ton piece of equipment into water.
• Time and Cost Reduction: The Honghua Group's innovative technology allows one basin to produce 10 offshore drilling platforms simultaneously. Through this technology, companies can shorten the construction time of a semi-submergible platform by three months. This time saved transfers directly into monetary savings of $54 million, assuming a daily rental of $60,000 for a sixth-generation semi-submergible platform.
• Revolutionizing the Industry: With an astounding 11-times increase in its lifting capacity compared to existing mobile cranes, the "Honghai Crane" revolutionizes construction of offshore platforms as well as large ships of over 10,000 tons by reducing construction time and cost.

About Honghua Group:

Honghua Group Limited is a large-scale equipment manufacturer and drilling service provider, specializing in research, design, manufacture, and set-assembly of drilling rigs, offshore engineering, and oil & gas exploitation and production equipment. With its land drilling rig manufacturing base in Sichuan province, Honghua Group is the biggest exporter of drilling rigs in China, and one of the largest land drilling rig manufacturers in the world. For more information on Honghua, please visit http://www.hh-gltd.com/ or http://www.hh-america.com/.

SOURCE Honghua Group