In the traditional shipbuilding model, shipbuilders need to bid for orders from shipowners. But nowadays, with shipbuilders running low on capacity and shipowners wanting to take delivery of their vessels as soon as possible, a new model is beginning to emerge.
Oman Shipping, a unit of Oman’s national logistics provider Asyad Group, has beaten its Greek rival to win the tender for two very large crude carrier (VLCC) slots launched earlier this year by Hanwha Ocean (formerly Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering).
Due to the lack of capacity, some Korean shipbuilders have intentionally reserved some of their early delivery dates and selectively offered slots to shipowners who wish to deliver their vessels earlier, in order to pursue higher profits.
Based on this backdrop, in April this year, Hanwha Ocean launched a tender for two VLCC slots with deliveries scheduled for 2026. This means that shipowners in urgent need of VLCCs will only need to wait for two years to take delivery of the new shipbuildings. The 2 slots were vacated by Greek shipping company Evalend Shipping.
According to Korean media, it is “very unusual” for shipowners to have to bid for a slots before ordering.
Hanwha Ocean’s VLCC slots tender is offered to shipowners who are looking for a quick delivery and can accept a higher cost. The delivery date of 2026 means that the design and construction of the vessel can begin as soon as a shipbuilding contract is signed. As there are few new VLCC shipbuilding slots left in Chinese and Korean shipyards this year, faster delivery slots are still attractive to some owners. In contrast, shipowners need to pay higher prices.
According to the latest news, Oman Shipping has become the final winner of Hanwha Ocean’s tender, and the new vessels are scheduled to be delivered in 2026 if a formal shipbuilding contract is signed between the two parties. Oman Shipping has offered US$130 million each, which is in line with Hanwha Ocean’s expected price.
Currently, the market price for newbuilding VLCCs ranges from US$120 million to US$128 million, and the agreed price reached by the two parties this time is between US$2 million and US$10 million higher than the average market price. This also means that the shipowner will have to pay a higher price for the vessel in order to realize a quick delivery.
Hanwha Ocean’s eventual choice of Oman Shipping was also said to be based in part on its friendly relationship with Oman. In 2006, aewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering signed a 10-year concession contract with Omani government for the construction of a ship repair yard which successfully completed the repair works of more than 450 vessels at the end of the concession period in 2016; In 2019, Oman Shipping ordered three 300,000 dwt environmentally friendly VLCCs from then Daewoo Shipbuilding under its tanker fleet renewal strategy.
Oman Shipping operates a fleet of more than 50 vessels with a total capacity of over 8 million tons. It includes liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) carriers, VLCCs, crude oil tankers as well as very large ore carriers (VLOCs), and container ships.