Neda Maritime Agency of Greece has signed a product tanker newbuilding deal with South Korea’s Daehan Shipbuilding.
Shipbuilding market sources said the Greek owner inked a contract last week for an LR2 tanker, with an option for a second such vessel.
Affinity (Shipping) is said to have brokered the deal.
An official at Daehan confirmed his company had received a LR2 newbuilding order but declined to comment on the identity of the buyer, citing contract confidentiality.
The confirmed contract came two weeks after TradeWinds reported that Neda was planning to order the 115,000-dwt product tankers.
TradeWinds understands that Neda is paying slightly less than $50m per ship. The company is slated to take delivery of the tanker, which will not have a scrubber fitted and will be built to IMO Tier III emissions standards, at the end of 2021.
This is the first time that Neda has ordered ships at Daehan.
The Lykiardopulo family company currently has three LR2s on the water — the 110,000-dwt Seriana (built 2015), Stellata (built 2016) and Survetta (built 2008).
The oldest product carrier was built by STX Offshore & Shipbuilding in South Korea, while the newer ones were constructed by Sumitomo Heavy Industries of Japan.
In addition to the LR2 at Daehan, Neda also has a VLCC newbuilding under construction at Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries. The scrubber-fitted, 300,000-dwt crude carrier was ordered last year for about $91.5m and is set for delivery during fourth quarter of 2021.
The Lykiardopulo family, whose history in shipping goes back more than 120 years, also controls 13 bulkers in Neda's fleet: six capesizes, six kamsarmaxes and a supramax bulker.
Clarksons' Shipping Intelligence Network lists Daehan with 20 newbuildings on its orderbook, including Neda’s LR2.
The shipyard is building suezmax tankers for NS Lemos and the Angelicoussis Group, as well as aframax crude carriers for Sun Enterprises, Valles Steamship and Minerva Marine, among others.
Daehan, which is based in Haenam in the south-west of South Korea, is under the control of its lenders, with state-owned Korea Development Bank being the largest creditor.
Shipbuilding sources said Daehan is also poised to receive an order for an aframax tanker newbuilding from Pleiades Shipping Agents.
The Greek shipping company is finalising a contract for a 115,000-dwt crude carrier with the South Korean yard, to be delivered at the end of 2021.
Harry Papachristou contributed to this article
