The output of China's shipbuilding industry reached a record 14.52 million dwt in 2006, making up close to one-fifth of the global total for the same year, according to official statistics.

The Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (CSTIND) announced on Tuesday that the output of 2006 was 20 percent higher than that of the previous year.

According to the CSTIND, China's top two shipbuilding giants, the China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) and the China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC), reported annual output of 6.02 million dwt and 2.67 million dwt respectively. The rest of the market was covered by local shipbuilding companies.

China's shipbuilding companies received new orders totaling 42.51 million dwt last year, bringing the total ship orders to 68.72 million dwt, or 24 percent of the global total.

Last year was the 12th consecutive year that China ranked as the third largest shipbuilder in the world, following the Republic of Korea (ROK) and Japan. China has narrowed the distance behind the ROK and Japan in output in the past two years, according to the CSTIND.

China is expected to become the world's biggest shipbuilder by 2015, said Chen Xiaojin, general manager of the CSSC.

Zhang Guangqin, chairman of the China Association of National Shipbuilding Industry, said the output of large oil tankers accounted for 51 percent of China's total shipbuilding output last year.