Egypt’s National Navigation Co (NNC) is renewing its fleet with a bulker order in China as part of a wider government drive to boost the domestic fleet.
The company said a contract has been signed for two 82,000-dwt kamsarmax vessels at China’s Jiangsu Hantong Ship Heavy Industry.
Delivery will be in 2026, but no price has been given.
The newbuildings will boost the fleet to 16 vessels, with a capacity of more than 1m tonnes.
VesselsValue lists 14 ships currently: 11 panamaxes, two supramaxes and a panamax container ship.
Four bulkers still date from the 1990s.
The ministry of transport said on Facebook that the contract signing was “an important day for the Egyptian maritime transport sector”.
Kamel al-Wazir, minister of transport, said there is a plan to raise the number of state-owned vessels to 31 from 14 by 2030.
The target is for annual capacity of 20m tonnes.
The Zawya website cited al-Wazir as saying the idea is to handle imports, particularly of wheat, on behalf of the General Authority for Supply Commodities.
‘Race against time’
Al-Wazir said 40% of NNC’s capacity will have been renewed in just three years, “which is an unprecedented achievement”.
“The ministry of transport and the national shipping company are racing against time to achieve the strategic goals of strengthening the national commercial fleet in line with the leading position of the Arab Republic of Egypt,” he said.
The expansion plan also includes Arab Bridge Maritime, which has seven ferries, Cairo Ferries and Egyptian Tanker Co, which owns an aframax and an MR2.
In November, NNC unveiled itself as the buyer of a kamsarmax newbuilding in its last phase of construction.
The Cairo-based owner said it was spending $38m on the 82,000-dwt vessel to be delivered by Jiangsu New Hantong in the first quarter of this year.
The vessel was the AP Lovrijenac (built 2024), which Croatia’s Atlantska Plovidba disclosed selling to undisclosed buyers earlier in November.
