China's independently produced diesel engine prototype with high power was put into test on Friday, which marks a big breakthrough in the research and development of homemade engines and will meet the demand of diesel-powered large and medium-sized naval vessels.

The new generation of high-power diesel engine for naval vessels was independently developed by China Shipbuilding Industry Corp (CSIC), read an article posted on the CSIC WeChat account on Monday.

The article said that the new-generation high-power and high-speed diesel engine was totally domestically made, which has reached the global advanced standards and will meet the urgent demands of large and medium-sized naval vessels. The specific name and type of the diesel engine is yet to be revealed.

Currently, most of the Chinese military ships adopt the 16PA6 V-280 STC diesel engine, which was made by a French diesel engine manufacturer named SEMT Pielstick, with a power of 5,180 kilowatts, news portal guancha.cn reported, saying that the Pielstick diesel engines are popular because of their fuel efficiency, high power and reliability.

Song Zhongping, a military expert who served in the People's Liberation Army Rocket Force, said that the engine test would help improve independent production capacity and save costs in ship building.

"China previously used diesel engines made by foreign countries. The high-power diesel engine is a signal of China's improving creativity and independent R&D ability, which meanwhile will help save costs for military ships and guarantee dynamic power supply in an independent way," said Song.