Investing 1 billion RMB and built by a Chinese state-owned enterprise, the replica version of the “Titanic” has been under construction for over 11 years and has never been completed. Last month, the investors declared bankruptcy, leaving the project completely unfinished.
According to a drone video circulating online, a replica “Titanic” ship, located at a shipyard along the Qijiang River in Daying County, Sichuan Province, has taken shape but is covered in rust. The construction site is deserted, giving off a desolate feeling, with the ship model and surrounding scaffolding and cranes all rusted.
In early April, the mainland official media “China News Weekly” reported that in March, the so-called “unsinkable Titanic” was lying by the Qijiang River in Daying County, Suining City, Sichuan Province, with visible signs of rust.
Chairman Su Shaojun of Yongle Seven Star Cultural Tourism Development Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Seven Star Company”), the project’s investor, stated, “We have sold off all the shares of the hydroelectric power plants and put nearly all our assets into it, but we still could not keep the construction plan going.”
The original “Titanic” cruise liner sank in the Atlantic Ocean after hitting an iceberg on April 15, 1912, resulting in the deaths of 1523 people, with only 711 survivors.
This replica “Titanic” in Sichuan is 269 meters long and 28 meters wide, replicating all scenes from the real “Titanic,” including the banquet hall, theater, luxurious first-class cabins, observation deck, swimming pool, and more.
Chairman Su Shaojun of Seven Star Company previously introduced to the media that every detail, from the steel plate thickness of the ship to the flushing toilets and tiles, had to be consistent with the Victorian-era real “Titanic.”
The replica “Titanic” is one of the core attractions in the “Romantic Mediterranean” scenic area in Daying County.
It is reported that when the project started in 2014, it was grandly announced with a planned investment of 1 billion RMB and was scheduled for its maiden voyage in 2017. However, due to financial constraints, the cruise ship only completed 90% of its steel hull construction, and the interior cabins have not been renovated to this day. In May of last year, Su Shaojun even denied to the media that the project was unfinished, claiming that it was “getting ready to restart.”
Now, the entrance to the “Romantic Mediterranean” scenic area is now a cluster of unfinished European-style buildings.
Seven Star Company declared bankruptcy in March this year, with both the replica “Titanic” and the “Romantic Mediterranean” project becoming unfinished assets on the company’s books.
The South China Morning Post reported that the project to build the “Sichuan Titanic” has become the latest symbol of China’s era of crazy investments, leaving a series of bankrupt and staggering debts for local governments throughout mainland China.
Public records show that the replica “Titanic” project was built by the state-owned Chinese shipyard Wuhan Shipbuilding Factory, a subsidiary of China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation.