Floating fortresses, straight from the pages of George Orwell and favoured by evil geniuses with a penchant for white Angora cats, may soon exist outside the world of post-apocalyptic fiction and James Bond films.
Two Chinese companies say they are to build platforms as long as 3.2km that could host airstrips, docks, helipads, barracks or even “comprehensive security bases”, in the words of one company executive.
For now, the structures remain within the realm of computer graphics, plastic dioramas and PowerPoint presentations. The companies emphasise their more peaceful potential as duty-free shopping centres and exotic tourist destinations.
But executives are open about the fact that there are also military applications for their projects, known as very large floating structures, which could one day become part of China’s naval armada.
The structures are dual-use, said Feng Jun, chairman of Hainan Offshore Industry, a company developing the technology. “So far these are only in the design and research phase.” The technology, still being developed worldwide, has been used mainly in the area of oil and gas, by companies such as Shell.
Structures akin to the floating fortresses of Nineteen Eighty-Four could be a fearsome complement to half a dozen newly created islands that Beijing has dredged out of the floor in the South China Sea. With airstrips, harbours and other facilities, these are aimed at buttressing China’s claim to 90 per cent of the sea, which is disputed by its neighbours as well as the US.
While floating islands would be granted none of the sovereignty of real islands by international law, they could nonetheless be used to station aircraft or buttress the defences of the artificial islands.
Hainan Offshore’s website refers to the potentially strategic use of its wares. “Under the increasingly complicated South China Sea situation,” it says in a company introduction, “Hainan Offshore Industry adheres to the principle ‘when the sovereignty of the state is challenged, time and tide wait for no man’.”
Deployment of a VLFS could test already tense relations in the region. “Planting one of these in the middle of the South China Sea would be a terribly provocative act,” said Richard Bitzinger, an authority on maritime security.
China’s military appears to have shown interest in VFLS projects. Hainan Offshore showed plastic models of a VLFS oil-drilling rig at a closed-door conference for military industry in July, hosted in Beijing by China’s State Administration of Science Technology and Industry for National Defence. In April, a photo of a closed-door forum sponsored by the China National Defence University and Peking University showed a People’s Liberation Army officer speaking at a podium in front of a large poster of a VLFS featuring an airstrip, though no information could be found on who he was or what he said. A spokesman for China’s defence ministry this week said he had never heard of any plans for procuring or using such structures.
Jidong Development, a state-owned company listed on the Shenzhen stock exchange, confirmed it was contributing most of the Rmb3.7bn in research funding to the joint project.
The first VFLS is being built at dry dock in Caofeidian near Beijing, Wang Shuyong, manager of a Jidong subsidiary, told local media. This VFLS would be used as a “deep sea comprehensive security base”. Mr Wang declined to comment when contacted by the FT.
The Caofeidian Industrial Zone mentions in its 2014 annual report that it is “helping the companies engaged in the VLFS project to file paperwork for factory planning and construction and use of the industrial coast, and promptly taking action to prepare for construction”.
Still, experts say the structures — if built — are more likely to be large oil drilling rigs. But even then, they could change the maritime power dynamic. Last year China parked an oil-drilling platform in a section of the sea claimed by Vietnam, sparking a heated confrontation at sea between Chinese and Vietnamese fishing boats. The rig was later withdrawn.
In any case, Mr Bitzinger doubts they would have much military value in a conflict. They would be “expensive and hard to move around”, he said, adding that China would be better off with more aircraft carriers.
源自喬治攠威爾(George Orwell)的小說，被熱愛白色安哥拉貓的險惡天才所青睞的“浮動碉堡”，或將很快存在於末往後科幻小說和詹姆斯邦德(James Bond)片子以外。
有兩家中國公司表現，它們將建築長達3.2千米的平台，上面可容納飛機跑道、船埠、直升機停機坪、軍營甚或“綜合保障基地”——這是個中一家公司的高管的用詞。
今朝，這類浮動平台仍僅存在於盤算機圖形、塑料模子和幻燈片演示中。兩家公司都誇大它們在寧靜用處方面的潛力，好比作為免稅購物中間和具備異國情調的旅行目標地等。
但兩家公司的高管其實不諱言這些項目也具備軍事用處，所謂的“超大型海上浮動平台”大概終有一天能成為中國水師“無敵艦隊”的一部門。
開辟這一技巧的海南遠海實業(Hainan Offshore Industry)董事長馮軍(音)稱，這類平台體具備兩重用處，“到今朝為止，還都只是在計劃和研討階段。”這類技巧在天下上尚屬於成長當中，重要被殼牌(Shell)等公司用於煤油和自然氣範疇。
與《一九八四》(Nineteen Eighty-Four)中的“浮動碉堡”相似的平台，將對中國當局在南中國海經由過程吹沙填海新造的六個島嶼起到壯大的彌補感化。具有飛機跑道、口岸和其他舉措措施，這些浮動平台的制作目標是加強中國對南中國海90%海疆的主權主意，周邊的鄰國和美國均對中國這類主意持貳言。
依照國際法，“浮動島嶼”並不克不及得到真正島嶼所享有的主權，但它們可以用於停放飛機或增強人工島嶼的防備。
海南遠海實業的網站先容了其平台的潛伏計謀用處。公司簡介中寫道：“面臨日益龐雜的南海局面，海南遠海實業株式會社秉持‘國度主權遭到嚴格挑釁，計謀需求時不再來!’主旨。”
安排此類超大型海上浮動平台或對本已重要的地域幹系造成磨練。海洋平安題目專家理查德畢辛格(Richard Bitzinger)說：“在南中國海的中央地位安排如許一座超大型浮動平台將是一種極具尋釁性的行動。”
中國軍方仿佛已對超大型海上浮動平台項目表示出興致。在中國國度國防科技產業局(SASTIND)本年7月舉辦的一次兵工業閉門集會上，海南遠海實業展現了一款大型海上浮動煤油鉆井平台的塑料模子。本年4月，一張中國國防大學(China National Defence University)與北京大學(Peking University)結合主理的閉門論壇的照片表現，一位國民解放軍(PLA)軍官在講台上談話，死後的巨型展板上是一座具有飛機跑道的大型海上浮動平台，只管咱們不曉得這位軍官是誰，說了甚麽。但中國國防部談話人日前表現，他從未據說過任何有關中國軍方獲得或應用此類平台的籌劃。
在深圳證交所上市的國有企業冀東成長(Jidong Development)已證明，該公司將為這一結合項目所需的37億元國民幣研發經費供給大部門資金。
冀東成長部屬一家子公司總司理王術永對本地媒體說，首坐大型海上浮動平台正在離北京不遠的曹妃甸的幹船廠中制作。這座浮動平台將被用作“深海綜合保障基地”。英國《金融時報》記者接洽到了王術永，但他謝絕置評。
曹妃甸產業區在其2014年年度申報中提到，該區正在贊助介入超大型海上浮動平台項目標企業提交有關廠區計劃和扶植和產業海岸應用的申請文件，並將快速采用行為為工程扶植做好預備。
只管如斯，專家稱這類平台(假如建成的話)更大概像是大型煤油鉆井平台。但縱然是如許，它們也可以轉變海上力氣比較。客歲，中國在南中國海一處與越南存在爭議的海疆安排了一座煤油鉆井平台，激發中越漁船間的一場劇烈對立。該平台厥後被撤回。
無論如何，畢辛格疑惑這類浮動平台在辯論中能施展若幹軍事代價。他說，它們“造價昂貴、挪動艱苦”。他以為，具有更多航空母艦對中國來講大概更好。
市場價：HK$ 110
