China constructs new large naval replenishment ship

Vantor imagery shows a new replenishment vessel under construction at the COMEC Longxue shipyard near Guangzhou in China. (Satellite image © 2026 Vantor/© 2026 Janes)

Satellite imagery has revealed what may be a new large replenishment vessel under construction for the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) at the COMEC Longxue shipyard near Guangzhou.

Imagery captured on 25 March shows a substantial naval hull occupying one of the shipyard's building docks, alongside several other vessels at various stages of construction.

Janes assesses this vessel to be an auxiliary-type ship based on its size, proportions, and features.

Based on scaling against the dock length, gantry cranes, and nearby hulls, the vessel is assessed to measure approximately 271 m in length with a beam of around 37 m.

This places the vessel among the largest replenishment ships currently under construction worldwide, and the dimensions are consistent with the PLAN's existing Type 901 fast combat support ships in terms of proportions.

The hull form is broad and slab-sided, with a full midsection optimised for volume rather than speed alone.

This is a characteristic associated with large fleet auxiliaries designed to carry fuel, dry stores, and ammunition for carrier strike groups.

Construction appears to have progressed beyond the basic hull assembly stage, as the imagery shows the ship structurally complete up to the main deck, with deck plating largely fitted along the length of the hull.

In several areas, vertical structures and deckhouse foundations are visible, indicating that the vessel has entered the early superstructure erection phase.

Internal framing, which dominates at earlier stages of construction, is now largely obscured, suggesting that block integration is substantially complete.