According to industry sources, dry bulk shipowner SteelShips has returned to South Korea’s medium-sized shipyard K Shipbuilding to order two 50,000 DWT MR product tankers, which are expected to be delivered in 2027. K Shipbuilding is the preferred shipyard for SteelShips’ new shipbuilding plan.
The cost of the new vessel has not been disclosed, but it is said to be able to use liquefied natural gas and methanol fuel.
In recent years, SteelShips has been committed to diversifying its dry bulk shipping business. In 2021, K Shipbuilding received an order for one MR product tanker from SteelShips, and the two parties subsequently signed an order for four vessels of the same type in May 2023.
Currently, SteelShips has sold five MR product tankers at a profit and currently owns only one MR product tanker, the Marina M, which was built in 2022.
SteelShips is an international provider of marine dry bulk transportation services for bulk cargoes such as grains, scrap, coal, iron ore, petroleum coke, cement, clinker and urea, according to its official website. The company also owns seven bulk carriers, according to its fleet list, and has signed a letter of intent for the construction of 2+2 Ultramax bulk carriers at an undisclosed shipyard in China, which are expected to be delivered in the first quarter and second quarter of 2026.