Cosco Shipping Specialized Carriers has struck $1.11bn charter deals of up to 15 years with three Chinese leasing companies for a series of woodchip carrier newbuildings.

It said it has chartered 12 ships of 70,000 dwt from Bank of Communications Financial Leasing (Bocomm Leasing), China Merchants Bank Financial Leasing (CMB FL) and SPDB Financial Leasing (SPDB FL).

Cosco Shipping said it is paying $16,900 per day for each vessel and is chartering them for between 177 and 179 months.

Bocomm Leasing and CMB FL will each supply five vessels, while SPDB FL has fixed out two ships.

The woodchip carriers will be built by Cosco Dalian Shipyard. The price was not disclosed.

Cosco Shipping did not reveal the delivery dates of the newbuildings or how it will be trading them. But shipbuilding sources said the Chinese yard is due to deliver them in 2023 and 2024.

Cosco Shipping is said to have started the newbuilding discussions with the shipyard last year, but the official contracts were signed recently by the leasing houses.

Sources familiar with Cosco Shipping said the Cosco Dalian newbuildings will be the largest woodchip carriers it is going to operate. Its current log carrier fleet is between handysize and 62,000 dwt.

The last comparable deal for this ship type was in June last year by Bocomm Leasing, which ordered two gearless 70,000-dwt vessels and six geared 64,000-dwt ships at Chengxi Shipyard at between $38m and $39m each for 2023 and 2024 delivery.

Sources said Cosco Shipping has also chartered four ultramax tweendeckers from CMB FL. The quartet was previously owned by Singapore’s IMC Shipping and was bought by the Chinese leasing company in February.

IMC Shipping was reported to have sold the 64,800-dwt Great Zhou (ex-Maritime Challenger), Maritime Sonia, 64,900-dwt Great Qin (ex-Maritime Sinchai, all built 2017) and Great Shang (ex-Maritime Voyager, built 2016) at an average price of $40.26m each.