Cardiff Group, a Greek shipping company owned by George Economou, has returned to Jiangsu New Hantong Ship Heavy Industry Co., Ltd (NHT) to place an order for 2 Suezmax tankers, according to Trade Winds.
George Economou has ordered two additional Suezmax tankers from NHT through its subsidiary Cardiff Group, which are expected to be delivered in the second half of 2026, sources said.
By the end of last year, Cardiff Group had already inked two 157,000 DWT Suezmax tankers with NHT, by which the shipyard has formally entered the Suezmax tanker construction market. Together with the two additional tankers, Cardiff Group has ordered four Suezmax tankers from the shipyard, with the price of each unit ranging from $83 million to $86 million, and the total value of the orders ranging from $332 million (RMB 2.385 billion) to $344 million (RMB 2.472 billion).
In addition to orders from “regular customers”, NHT has recently made a major breakthrough in the very large crude carrier (VLCC) market. Frafigura, one of the world’s largest metals and minerals traders, has placed an order for two 319,000 dwt VLCCs at NHT, which are expected to be delivered in the third quarter of 2026. This is the first VLCC order for NHT and also the first time for Trafigura to place an order for VLCCs as a shipowner.
It is understood that the main products of NHT includes two major types of bulk carriers and liquid cargo carriers, as well as offshore products. In terms of ship types, bulk carriers cover 38,000DWT~208,000DWT, while liquid cargo carriers cover MR product tankers, LR1 product tankers, LR2 product tankers, Suezmax tankers, and the whole series of VLCCs.
In recent years, bulk carriers have become a major ship type for NHT. According to Clarkson data, NHT is currently holding orders for 50 ships with deliveries scheduled through 2026, including 41 bulk carriers, six crude oil carriers and three product tankers.
