Stolt-Nielsen Limited announced that its Joint Venture between NYK Line and Stolt Tankers (NYK Stolt Tankers, or ‘NST’) has reached an agreement with XMXYG Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co., Ltd.(XMXYG SOE) in China to build six 38,000 dwt stainless steel chemical tankers for delivery between late 2026 and 2029.
These vessels are sisterships to Stolt Tankers’ order of six ships from Wuhu Shipyard announced in November. The ships feature 30 cargo tanks, offering a range of cargo flexibility and are designed to maximise fuel efficiency using a wide range of energy savings devices and shore power connection. They can also be retrofitted for battery and methanol propulsion, supporting Stolt Tankers’ commitment to the energy transition.
The 38,000 dwt tankers’s propulsion system consists of a low-speed two-stroke engine, a fixed-pitch propeller and a shaft-type generator. It can be fuelled by marine heavy fuel oil (HFO) with a sulphur content of 0.1-0.5%, heavy diesel oil (MDO) and light diesel oil (MGO), all complying with the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) emission regulation Tier III.
The main engine of the vessel is based on Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR) technology for ships and the auxiliary engine is based on Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) technology. In addition, the vessel will be equipped with a shore power system, which can be upgraded to use methanol fuel and UPS battery power in the future.
This order reflects our strategy to maintain scale of our core 38,000 deadweight tonne fleet by adding newbuildings not otherwise available in the second-hand market in a capital efficient way through our NST joint venture.” Udo Lange, Chief Executive Officer, Stolt-Nielsen Limited.
Founded in 1959, Stolt-Nielsen is understood to have grown to become the world’s largest chemical/tanker operator for the global transport of bulk liquid chemicals, edible oils, acids and clean petroleum products, with a fleet of 166 vessels with a total capacity of more than 3 million deadweight tonnes.
A few days ago, Germany’s GEFO Shipping Group has announced that it has signed a contract for the construction of ten 3,850 dwt stainless steel chemical tankers with XMXYG SOE, which are expected to be delivered between 2026 to 2028, with an order value of “a three-digit million euros”.
At present, XMXYG SOE mainly focuses on environment-friendly and energy-saving series of bulk carriers under 100,000 dwt, oil tankers and container ships, small and medium-sized stainless steel/special-painted chemical tankers as well as other engineering vessels. From April 2021 until the announcement of GEFO’s order, all new vessels undertaken by XMXYG SOE were bulk carriers.
