BEIJING, April 18 (Xinhua) -- The State Oceanic Administration (SOA) on Wednesday announced the establishment of a national maritime survey fleet in an effort to improve China's ability to conduct maritime surveying and research.
The fleet consists of 19 survey vessels, 11 of which are oceangoing research ships with a displacement of more than 1,500 tonnes. The ships are separately owned by the SOA, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), the Ministry of Education (MOE) and other government sectors and institutes with maritime interests.
According to the SOA, the main task of the fleet is to undertake comprehensive maritime survey and complete research tasks as part of major national research projects, international maritime research cooperation and inter-governmental cooperative projects.
Liu Cigui, director of the SOA, said at the fleet's launching ceremony that the fleet will facilitate the creation of a maritime surveying and information-sharing platform.
He urged the fleet to act as the core of China's oceanic development strategy, take the initiative to undertake marine survey tasks and acquire full and accurate data from China's coastal waters, as well as the open sea.
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