SITC International Holdings said it has exercised options for two container vessels to be built in China.
The Hong Kong-listed operator is spending $58m for the two 1,800-teu container ships to be built at China’s Huanghai Shipbuilding.
The order adds to four vessels of the standard Bangkokmax vessels that were ordered in June.
The two vessels are slated for delivery in July and August 2027, according to a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange today.
The Chinese liner operator said it had ordered the vessels to expand the self-owned fleet of container vessels to meet operational requirements.
The options move follows a $116m order at the same yard inked on 29 June for four vessels of the same design.
The first four ships are slated for delivery in 2026 and 2027, according to Clarksons data.
Relationship
SITC has now ordered a dozen vessels of the same design at Huanghai in recent years.
The carrier recently took over the last in an initial batch of six vessels, the 1,800-teu Sitc Ruide and Sitc Junde (both built 2024), which were delivered in September.
These were ordered in April 2022 for around $31m each.
SITC also has a pair of smaller ships for delivery from Daesun Shipbuilding & Engineering of South Korea.
The 1,023-teu SITC Yuanhe and SITC Tonghe are slated for delivery in the next six months.
They are the last of ten conventionally-powered sisters that Sitc ordered from the Busan-based shipyard in 2021 for a reported price of $21m per unit.
Chairman Yang Xianxiang told investors that SITC was planning to add more container ships to his fleet.
The company planned to orders small vessels, as there were few orders for container below 3,000 teu ordered, he said.
The orders will join the company’s fleet that currently stands at around 108 vessels.
Some 84 are vessels under 2000 teu and 24 which are between 1,000 to 3,000 teu.
Only nine of the vessels are chartered.
SITC, which is China’s second largest liner operator, underwent management changes in March when long-long serving chairman and controlling shareholder Yang Shaopeng stepped down.
That followed a deal in September last year when the company paid $58m to acquire five feeder vessels and two newbuildings from companies owner by Yang Shaopeng, who had been chairman since April 2006.
The intra-Asia feeder specialist ranks 14th in the global container shipping enterprises, behind China Cosco Shipping, according to Alphaliner rankings.
