DHT Holdings announced it has entered into agreements to build four very large crude carriers (VLCC) in South Korea for delivery between April and December 2026.
Two of the large tankers will be constructed at Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries and the other two at Hanwha Ocean (formerly known as Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering), for an average price of $128.5 million. The contracts include options for an additional four vessels that can be delivered during the first half of 2027.
The vessels have been ordered to Super Eco-designs and have carrying capacity of about 320,000 metric tons. The ships will be fitted with Exhaust Gas Cleaning Systems, be Tier III compliant and hold class ready notations for multiple fuels
DHT said it plans to finance the project with cash-flows from operations, available liquidity and new mortgage debt.
“We have secured very early and competitive delivery slots to build the most efficient ships and of the highest quality the market has to offer,” said DHT president and CEO, Svein Moxnes Harfjeld. “We expect our clients to welcome these timely fleet additions through DHT’s continued safe, efficient and reliable transportation of crude oil.”
New York-listed DHT said the vessel supply scenario for the VLCC sector is “very constructive”.
The company said the current VLCC orderbook equals less than 3% of the existing fleet and that delivery slots for potential additional VLCC orders available from 2027 onward face competition from other shipping segments.
DHT also noted that the VLCC fleet is rapidly aging. By the end of 2026, close to 50% of the fleet is projected to be older than 15 years of age and over 20% will be older than 20 years. Meanwhile, IMO’s implementation of the Carbon Intensity Indicator (CII) will increasingly constrain the efficiency of older ships, which could be forced to decrease speed to meet lower emissions targets thereby reducing shipping capacity.
In addition, DHT said about 160 VLCCs, with an average age of 21-years, are estimated to have been involved in sanctioned trades, meaning these vessels have limited, if any, commercial opportunities in the compliant markets and trades.