(Yicai) Oct. 24 -- China has launched the world’s first pure electric container ship with a carrying capacity in excess of 10,000 tons, marking a key milestone for the country's green shipping industry.

The Gezhouba has a deadweight tonnage of 13,740 tons and was launched near the Three Gorges Dam, the world's largest hydropower project, in Yichang in Hubei province, Yicai learned at yesterday’s commissioning ceremony.

At nearly 130 meters in length, the vessel has 12 sets of box-type lithium battery power units, giving it a range of 500 kilometers. It cuts fuel consumption by about 617.5 tons and carbon dioxide emissions by around 2,052 tons a year.

Built by Yichang-based Gezhouba Group Machinery Ship, the Gezhouba will be used to transport bulk cargo along the main route of the Yangtze River. Its commissioning marks the entry of China's inland shipping sector into a new stage of zero emissions and intelligent development.

The vessel uses new energy power, smart navigation and control, and other new technologies, said Yan Xinping, an academician at the Chinese Academy of Engineering. Its construction has validated a series of core technologies and supporting infrastructure, providing essential technical support and an innovation model for the high-quality development of Yangtze shipping industry, Yan noted.

Yichang is a major manufacturing center for inland cargo ships in China. Some 150 new vessels were built in the city last year, including 50 new energy boats, with a total deadweight tonnage of 1.5 million tons.

In addition to all-electric ships, other types of new energy vessels that have been build in Yichang include the Changhang Huoyun 002, China's first pure liquefied natural gas bulk carrier, the Yangtze River Three Gorges 1, an electric tourist ship, and the Three Gorges Hydrogen Boat 1, the country's first hydrogen-powered ship, a local official told Yicai.

Among the orders received by Yichang Shipbuilding Industrial Park this year, those for new energy vessels make up 88 percent, said Director Wang Xu. "The market trend has completely changed," he noted.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev