Newbuilding Orders Pick Up

The newbuilding market has picked up the pace during the past week, while a significant number of deals was reported in the S&P market as well. In its latest weekly report, shipbroker Allied Shipbroking said that “the number of newbuilding contracts picked up, following the particularly quiet preceding week. Numerous sources have confirmed HMM’s order for 9 container vessels that were reported at the LOI stage two weeks ago. Over half of contracts placed were placed for tanker vessels, of which 8 were for LR1/2 vessels and the rest MRs. Market participants are likely encouraged by the continued strength in the tanker market, SnP activity and, as noted last week, the relatively low number of vessels on order. In the gas sector, Mitsui OSK Line returned with another near $250m LNG carrier order just weeks after contracting two such vessels from Samsung Heavy Industries. Dutch firm Vertom placed orders for 2 diesel-electric hybrid general cargo vessels, which makes for a total of 8 such vessels ordered from Thecla Bodewes Shipyards, demonstrating the value that European shipyards can bring to specialized projects. According to their statement, these vessels offer excellent EEDI numbers and easily adaptable propulsion, ready to take advantage of future alternative-fuel trends”.

In a similar note, shipbroker Banchero Costa added that “Hyundai Mipo received an order for 4 x MRs from Nissen Kaiun. Vessel are priced around $45.3mln each and deliveries are expected end 2024 and 2025. Eastern Pacific exercised an option for 2 x 7,000 ceu units at China Merchants. The vessels will be built by Jinling facility. The vessels are expected during 2025 and will be fitted with 7X62DF TIER III dual fuel engines”.

Meanwhile, in the S&P market this week, Allied Shipbroking added that “last week has seen a significant pick-up in secondhand sales activity, with transactions returning to more normal levels. In the dry bulk sector, an en-bloc sale of six VLOCs was the main protagonist, with buying appetite shifting away from smaller vessels.

One possible explanation could be the long-awaited recovery of the dry bulk markets, and the expectations economics will improve further into 2023. For the tanker market, the buying appetite of smaller vessels such as LR1s and MRs returned stronger, with en-bloc sales pushing the number of transactions up. As the embargo on Russian clean oil product plays out, product tanker earnings are again on a rally, with buyers prioritizing over larger vessels. The average age of tankers changing hands last week, slightly increased, to land at about 15 years old”.

Banchero Costa added that in the dry bulk market, there was a “huge deal in the NewCastlemax segment with Golden Ocean Group rumoured behind the acquisition of 6 vessels from H-line: HL AQUAMARINE 208,000 dwt 2021 New Times, HL DIAMOND 208,000 dwt 2020 New Times, HL EMERALD 208,000 dwt 2020 New Times, HL PEARL 208,000 dwt 2020 New Times, HL PORT WALCOTT 208,000 dwt 2017 CSI, HL SAPPHIRE 208,000 dwt 2021 New Times (all BWTS fitted, all scrubbed) have been reported sold en bloc at $291mln, which confirms the growing interest in modern tonnage, despite a struggling freight market. All vessels will be TC back for 3 years at $21,000/d. On smaller sizes, the OMICRON CREST 76,000 dwt 2004 Sasebo (BWTS fitted) was reported sold to Indonesian Buyers at $12mln, but it happears as an old sale. The Dolphin 57 MILOS 57,000 dwt 2010 Cosco Zhoushan (BWTS fitted) at $13.5mln, while the Korean built Handysize SHANGHAI PEARL 36,000 dwt 2011 Hyundai Mipo was rumoured sold to Vietnamese buyers at $13.75mln”.

Meanwhile, in the tanker market, the shipbroker reported “many en bloc deals, mainly in the LR1 sector. The most notable saw Navig8 purchase 4 x Chinese built LR1s (BWTS fitted) already under its own management: KONSTANTIN JACOB 76,500 dwt 2012 blt Dalian, CORDULA JACOB 76,000 dwt 2011 blt Dalian, GEORGE JACOB 76,000 dwt 2012 blt Dalian and TILL JACOB 70,000 dwt 2012 blt Dalian at $121mln from the German shipowner Jacob Shipping. After earning around $60mln from the sale of 3 x LR1s (2006 built) back in September 2022, Concordia Maritime kept selling and cashing in with 3 x LR1s (BWTS fitted, Ice class 1B & 1A) reported sold en bloc around $90mln to undisclosed buyers on a T/C back basis: STENA PROGRESS 65,000 dwt 2009 blt Brodosplit, STENA PREMIUM 65,000 dwt 2011 blt Brodosplit and STENA PRENGUIN 65,000 dwt 2010 blt Brodosplit. First class shipowners continue to exploit the strong market profiting from the sale of older tonnage, a good example is the recent sale of the VLCC Nave Photon 300,000 dwt 2008 blt Shanghai Jiangnan sold by the Navios for $58mln to Wirana”, Banchero Costa concluded.
Nikos Roussanoglou, Hellenic Shipping News Worldwide