South Korea’s mid-sized shipyard DH Shipbuilding (formerly Daehan Shipbuilding) has secured a new order for tankers, capitalizing on its technological competitiveness in the mid-sized ship field.
DH Shipbuilding announced on May 10 that it has signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with an Oceania-area shipping company for the construction of two 157,000 dwt Suezmax crude carriers at the highest cost of their type in the new shipbuilding market.
The new shipbuildings will be equipped with liquefied natural gas (LNG) dual-fuel engines and desulphurization units to reduce CO2 emissions and meet the stricter environmental regulations of the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
In January this year, DH Shipbuilding has delivered four 115,000 dwt LNG dual-fuel crude carriers to owners, proving its construction capability.
In February this year, DH Shipbuilding successfully won three 158,000 DWT shuttle tankers, reportedly owned by MARAN Tankers, a tanker company under Angelicoussis Shipping Group of Greece, with a total order value of about $400 million.
This is MARAN Tankers’ first entry into the shuttle tanker market and DH Shipbuilding’s second contract for a shuttle tanker after three years (first contract in 2020).
In 2023, DH Shipbuilding received orders for a total of 14 newbuildings in the tanker market, exceeding its annual order target and making it the only mid-sized shipyard in South Korea to make a profit. So far, DH Shipbuilding’s hand-held order book is 29 vessels valued at about $2.5 billion.
