Five fishery companies in the Pingtan Comprehensive Pilot Zone, Fujian province, will receive subsidies from the central government, according to the pilot zone's ocean and fishery department of the economic and development bureau, Pingtan Times reported on March 7.

The companies are part of a recently-released list from the national ocean fishing boats renovation project, a State-subsidized program in 2012.

Three of the five companies are involved in the pelagic fishery industry. The other two specialize in offshore fishing. They will receive subsidies totaling 133.8 million yuan ($21.52 million) from the central government.

As many as 56 fishing boats are included in the projects, including 53 pelagic fishing boats and three offshore boats. The total sum of the investment, in addition to subsidies from the central government, will reach about 514.3 million yuan.

The national project aims to optimize outdated fishing boats in accordance to a unified national standard to secure safety and reduce energy consumption.

Edited by Chen Zhilin and Michael Thai