Work is picking up on what appears to be China's first aircraft carrier, the Shi Lang. For eight years now, China has been tinkering with a half finished Russian aircraft carrier. Two years ago, this ex-Russian aircraft carrier, Varyag, was renamed the Shi Lang (after the Chinese general who took possession of Taiwan in 1681.
Early in 2009, China moved the Shi Lang into dry dock, where work is underway to install engines and other heavy equipment. It appears that the Shi Lang is a year or so from going to sea.
The Varyag has been in a Chinese shipyard at Dailan since 2002.The Varyag is one of the Kuznetsov class carriers that Russia began building in the 1980s. Only two ships of this class exist; the original Kuznetsov, which is in Russian service, and the Varyag (Source: Daily Mail Post, Nov 24, 2010).