COSCO

China Ocean Shipping Company, or COSCO in short, was founded in 1961 as a Chinese government agency. In the same year a subsidiary is formed in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province. The Guangzhou subsidiary purchased a British vessel and renamed it as Guanghua (Chinese: 光华). Guanghua made its maiden voyage to Jakarta for the People's Republic of China in April 1961.[9]

After US resumed the relation with China in the 1970s, China Ocean Shipping Company signed an agreement with American company Lykes Brothers Steamship Company in 1979. The agreement opens the commercial sea routes between the United States and the People's Republic of China.[10] In the same year, COSCO became the Chinese side representative to collaborate with International Telephone and Telegraph on repairing the communication facilities in the coastal cities of China.[11]

In 1981, COSCO won a contract from the Pakistani Government owned National Tanker Company of Pakistan, for crude oil transport.[12]

The company became a holding company and renamed as China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company in 1993.[13] Two other government owned companies, China Marine Bunker Supply Company (Chimbusco in short) and China Road Transport Company, which engaged in oil tanker and road transport businesses respectively, became the subsidiaries of the group in 1988 and 1992[14] respectively. China Road Transport Company was renamed into COSCO Logistics in 2001 (now part of COSCO Shipping Logistics). As of 2003, COSCO Logistics engaged in shipping agency, freight forwarding, third party logistics and supporting services.[14] While Chimbusco became a joint venture with PetroChina since 2003.[15]

COSCO has a Hong Kong division which the division acquired a HK-listed company Shun Shing Holdings[lower-alpha 2] in February 1997.[16] Hong Kong was a British colony until June 30, 1997 and became a special administrative region of China with a separate jurisdiction system since July 1. Another subsidiary of COSCO HK at that time,[16] COSCO Pacific,[lower-alpha 3] was a HK-listed company since 1994. COSCO Pacific has a joint venture with Hongkong International Terminals Limited, which operates a terminal in Kwai Tsing Container Terminals, Hong Kong since 1991.[17] COSCO Pacific acquired 49% stake of COSCO Logistics from the parent company in 2003. COSCO retained the remaining 51%.[14] COSCO Pacific also owned 20% stake of Hong Kong-based Chong Hing Bank from 1997[18] to 2007. In 2007 the stake was sold to the parent company, COSCO HK.[19][20]

In 1995, another subsidiary, COSCO Corporation (Singapore) Limited,[lower-alpha 4] became a listed company in Singapore Exchange.[21] The company was a component of Straits Times Index until 2010.[22]

COSCO also acquired a Shanghai-listed company in 1997 as a vehicle of backdoor listing. It became COSCO Development,[lower-alpha 5] which engaged in real estate. The direct parent company of COSCO Development was sold in 2005, thus COSCO Development was no longer part of the COSCO Group.[23] Also in 2005, COSCO Group acquired a company from COSCO Development.[24] That company was the operator of Boao Forum for Asia.[13]

In 2002, another subsidiary, COSCO Shipping Co., Ltd.,[lower-alpha 6] became a listed company in Shanghai.

In 2004, COSCO formed a joint venture with fellow Central Government owned Ansteel Group (Angang Group).[25]

In 2005, the flagship subsidiary of COSCO, China COSCO Holdings, became a listed company.[26] The A share of China COSCO Holdings was listed in Shanghai since 2007.[27]

In 2005, a smaller Central Government owned company, China Ocean Shipping Tally (known as China Tally in short), was merged into COSCO Group.[28]

In 2008, China COSCO Holdings was part of Financial Times Global 500 for the first time.[29]

By 2015, after more than 5 decades, COSCO Group expanded into one of the major shipping company of the country. It also had a few listed subsidiaries: COSCO Pacific, COSCO International Holdings, China COSCO Holdings, China International Marine Containers, etc., . Real estate developer, Sino-Ocean Group, was an associate company of COSCO until 2010.

In December 2015, COSCO Group merged with fellow Chinese Government owned China Shipping Group[30] to form China COSCO Shipping. COSCO Group was retained as an intermediate holding company.

In December 2017, COSCO Group (China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company) was re-incorporated from "An industrial enterprise owned by the whole people" to simply a limited company. The name of the company, also changed to China Ocean Shipping Company, Limited (Chinese: 中国远洋运输有限公司).[31]

On 31 July 2009, the Panama-flagged bulk carrier, Full City, operated by COSCO Group's HK division,[47] experienced engine failure and ran aground near Langesund, Telemark, Norway, during a storm, spilling 200 tons of heavy bunker fuel oil in an ecologically and environmentally sensitive wildlife area.[48]