Greece’s DryDel Shipping has ordered an ultramax bulker that will be built to a fuel-efficient design in Japan.
The shipowner, which is headed by Costas Delaportas and was previously known as Meadway Shipping, said on Thursday that it has ordered a Tess 66-design vessel at Tsuneishi Shipbuilding.
Delivery of the 66,000-dwt vessel — slightly larger than a conventional ultramax — is slated for 2028. The commercial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The ship will be built to Tsuneishi’s Aeroline design, “ensuring maximum efficiency and minimal environmental impact”, DryDel said in a LinkedIn update.
It will fully comply with Energy Efficiency Design Index Phase 3 regulations, “demonstrating our commitment to sustainable and responsible shipping practices”.
The company referred to the order as part of “the continued growth and modernisation of DryDel Shipping”.
The shipowner has eight other bulk carriers being constructed by Japanese shipbuilders at yards in Japan, the Philippines and China.
Earlier this month, DryDel almost doubled its money when it sold an older Japanese-built ultramax it had owned for just 18 months.
It offloaded the 61,645-dwt Luna Rossa (built 2010) to Chinese buyers for about $21m, having bought it in December 2020 for $11m.
In February last year, the Athens-based owner changed its name to DryDel to differentiate it from Meadway Bulkers, run by Dellaportas’ brother George.
Meadway has three ultramaxes being built by Tsuneishi at its Zhoushan yard in China to the same design as DryDel’s latest order. All three were contracted in October and are set for delivery in 2026.
The siblings split the Meadway Shipping & Trading fleet in 2021 following the death of its founder, their father, Dionysios, in 2019.
DryDel’s ships range from handysize to kamsarmax and have all been built at shipyards in Japan or controlled by Japanese shipbuilders.
Apart from its owned fleet, DryDel has chartered in 17 bulkers for long-term periods.
