Chinese firm to lure tourists with life-size replica of Titanic

A Chinese energy firm has confirmed plans to build a life-size replica of the ocean liner Titanic, and moor it on a local river to attract tourism.

The Sichuan-based Seven Star Energy Investment Group announced in Hong Kong on Sunday that it had hired an American company to produce designs for the model based on the Titanic’s sister vessel RMS Olympic.

The replica would be built by the Wuchang Shipbuilding Industry Company Ltd., – a subsidiary of the state-owned China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation – according to the South China Morning Post.

The construction of the model is expected to last two years, but the firm did not confirm if work had already started.

Creating the life-size replica is part of a larger plan to build a world-class tourist destination in the rural county of Daying in Sichuan Province according to the company, with the ship being permanently docked on the Qi River.

A Hollywood production designer working on the model’s design was quoted as saying the design team would rely on existing blueprints of the Olympic along with salvaged furniture as reference points.

The Olympic was launched in 1910, and retired at Southampton in England, after 24 years of service.

A report in the West China City Daily newspaper, based in Sichuan, said that plans for the model were previously announced at the 14th Western China International Fair in Chengdu, capital of the Province, adding that a Titanic museum would also be built to help people learn about the cruise ship’s history.