Japan’s JX Ocean has returned to Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) for two more VLGC newbuildings.
This brings the total on order at the Japanese yard to three.
One shipping source said the Yokohama company booked the pair of 83,000-cbm ships a few months ago but the deal was never reported.
According to Clarksons’ Shipping Intelligence Network, JX Ocean is scheduled to take delivery of the latest two gas carriers in the first and fourth quarters of 2020. The first vessel booked at the yard two years ago will be delivered in March next year.
The JX Ocean executive in charge of VLGCs was travelling and not available for comment. MHI officials said the shipyard does not disclose its newbuilding activities, citing contract confidentiality.
Gas carrier market sources familiar with JX Ocean said it has already lined up long-term employment contracts for the MHI newbuildings. Vitol, Eneos Globe and Japan Gas Energy are said to have fixed one ship each. Details of the charters and costs of the newbuildings were not disclosed.
In addition to the MHI orders, JX Ocean has an 80,000-cbm VLGC under construction at South Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries — its first-ever newbuilding contract outside of Japan. Ordered in April, the ship is slated for delivery in March 2020. It is not known how much the company is paying for the ship. Dorian LPG is believed to have chartered the unit.
JX Ocean, the shipping arm of Japanese energy giant JXTG Group, was formed in 2014 through the merger of JX Tanker and JX Shipping.
The company owns 57 Japanese-built vessels: eight VLCCs, nine VLGCs, four aframax tankers, 21 chemical tankers, five MR product carriers, nine bulkers and an asphalt tanker. It also has two VLCCs under construction at Japan Marine United.
