Greek shipowner Atlas Maritime is being named as the company behind an order for three very large ammonia carriers, which have been contracted in South Korea.
Holding company HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering said on Monday that it had inked a contract to build three VLACs.
It did not name the contracting party other than to describe it as “an Oceania-based” company.
HD KSOE gave a total price for the three vessels of KRW 489.6bn ($372m), valuing each ship at $124m.
This would appear to represent a rise on the February VLAC orders at the yard from Evalend Shipping, which were priced at $121m each.
The shipbuilder said the three VLACs confirmed on Monday will be built at HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and delivered by December 2027.
Newbuilding sources said Denmark’s European Maritime Finance (EMF) has been working on the three ships in partnership with Greek shipowner Atlas.
Copenhagen-based EMF has previously worked with Leon Patitsas-led Atlas on 20 newbuildings, including most recently two suezmax tankers.
TradeWinds has contacted EMF about the newbuildings and made efforts to put the same questions to Patitsas.
Calls to Atlas’ offices in Athens and London went unanswered on Monday with Greece celebrating a national holiday.
If confirmed, Atlas would be the latest in a long line of shipowners to jump on the VLAC newbuilding bandwagon.
Big names such as Maersk Tankers, TMS Cardiff Gas, Capital Gas, Qatar’s Nakilat, Idan Ofer-controlled Eastern Pacific Shipping, Greece’s Naftomar, Japanese giant NYK, PascoGas of Turkey and Dorian LPG have all contracted VLACs.
The vessels are essentially VLGCs but with hull-strengthening and a mix of other specifications that would enable them to move over to the long-haul ammonia trades when they materialise.
But brokers said the level of ordering on VLACs has slowed of late amid scarce slots at yards, strengthening prices and concerns about over-ordering.
HD KSOE said this latest trio of VLACs brings its total received orders for LPG-ammonia carriers to 24 vessels.
To date, the company has won business for 72 vessels, including one offshore unit, worth $8.75bn. It said this achieves 64.8% of its provisional annual order target of $13.5bn.
Aside from the LPG-ammonia newbuildings, HD KSOE has also logged orders for six LNG carriers, 26 product tankers, a single ethane vessel, two liquefied CO2 carriers, six VLCCs, three tankers, two pure car/truck carriers, one floating storage and regasification unit and an offshore structure.
