The Chinese government has issued a list of companies involved in offshore shipbuilding that made it to the so called "White List", according to local media.

The companies that make it to the list have a better chance of receiving financial loans from Chinese banks.

In the first batch, the country's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) selected seven shipyards, all state-owned, those being: CIMC Raffles, China Merchants Heavy Industry, Cosco Qidong Shipyard, Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding, Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Company, Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Offshore, and Cosco Nantong Shipyard.

The announcement follows a period of revision of the shipbuilders' applications that was launched this July.

Previously, the Chinese government said that the list would aim at consolidation of offshore businesses, along with encouraging of technological progress and innovation.

The list is similar to that of China's "White List" of conventional shipyards that were made eligible for restructuring within China's reform of the sector aimed at boosting competitiveness by cutting overcapacity.

The "White List" was announced in 2014 by China's government, as an additional incentive for shipyards which comply with the country's requirements in areas such as ship emissions, offering the rule-abiding shipyards benefits such as tax rebates and bank credits.