CONFIDENTIAL
flies the Liberian flag.
C
The Present Vessel
A
CONFIDENTIAL
The order for Vessel 1416 for World Denver
Shipping Ltd was obtained in late 1980 and the contract signed in April 1981 as part of a package of four vessels worth over £23m. for the Y K Pao group of companies. All four vessels are SD.14's; the first vessel was delivered at the end of February 1982; Vessel 1416 is due to be delivered in June 1982 and the last two in the second half of the year.
This is the first order placed by Sir Y K Pao in the UK since 1974 and represents a major breakthrough for British Shipbuilders into a market heavily
dominated by the Far Eastern yards.
Sir Y K Pao wrote direct to the Prime Minister to tell her that he had placed this order in the
UK.
The basic contract price of Vessel 1416 was £5,508,000 and a subsidy from the Intervention Fund of £1,205,840 was also made available to
Austin & Pickersgill Ltd to meet the net construction cost of the vessel of £6,713,840. The Intervention Fund subsidy was 21.9%: at that time the maximum rate was 23%.
The Hong Kong Market
The Hong Kong market offers enormous potential for the UK shipbuilding industry, occupying as it does a central position in Far East maritime development. Its shipowners are among the most influential in the world and own almost as much tonnage (the majority of vessels fly a flag of convenience) as the whole
of the British merchant fleet. Besides Sir Y K Pao's