Sri Lankan and Chinese firms exhibit for first time at Genoa and Cannes

2019 Genoa Boat Show

Three Sri Lankan boatbuilders shared a joint stand at Genoa this year

Sri Lankan and Chinese companies exhibited for the first time at the Genoa Boat Show and Cannes Yachting Festival this year as part of an effort to grow business in Europe.

At Cannes, Heysea Yachts, China’s largest and most consistent superyacht builder, took a stand and appointed one or more European dealers to broaden the knowledge of its brands and yacht models. This is a continuation of Heysea’s international expansion over recent years, which has included the US and Australia.

A Heysea spokeswoman explained to IBI that the company is developing its second shipyard which will be ready in 2020. With this new facility, Heysea will have one yard for yachts up to 30m (100ft) and the other for over 100ft. She said the company’s current Heysea brand order book comprises 10 projects from 8.5m-42m (28ft-139ft).

Heysea is also building yachts for other brands on an OEM basis, including craft at the lower end of the superyacht market.

Three Sri Lankan boatbuilders exhibited on a joint stand at the Genoa Boat Show. This initiative followed a visit to the event last year by the builders. The stand was supported by the Sri Lanka Export Development Board, which invited local boatbuilders to participate in a stand earlier this year.

Three Sri Lankan companies – Dhanusha Marine Lanka Exports (Pvt) Ltd, North West Marine Lanka (Pvt) Ltd, and Sealanie Boat Yard (Pvt) Ltd – were in attendance. Dhanusha showed a 20ft fishing boat which it has already exported to Norway.

Gayathri Amarasinghe, senior manager of sales and operations at Dhanusha Marine, told IBI: “We received many positive inquiries from clients. We hope to develop business with Italy in the future.”