Oldendorff Carriers is said to have ordered a series of newcastlemax bulkers worth $188m at China’s Jiangsu Hantong Ship Heavy Industry.
The Nantong-based, privately owned shipyard said the major German ship operator had signed several months ago for four newbuildings of 209,000 dwt each but the deal was never reported.
Jiangsu Hantong declined to disclose a price but said the vessels, which are due for delivery in 2020, will be built to IMO Tier-II emissions standards.
One source with knowledge of the deal said there are only two firm ships involved in the order, with options for more. He said Oldendorff is paying $47m for each ship, including many extras.
“These vessels were placed at the end of last year and became effective early this year when the market was still at the low,” one shipbuilding broker said.
“Since then, [the] shipbuilding price has surged and, in today’s market, shipyards are seeking around $55m per ship.”
The order is the second newcastlemax contract that Oldendorff has placed with Jiangsu Hantong.
Option exercised
The company inked the first deal in 2014, where the order involved two firm vessels plus two options at a price of around $54m apiece.
It appears Oldendorff had only exercised one optional vessel as Jiangsu Hantong only delivered three ships — the 209,000-dwt Hubertis Oldendorff (built 2016), and Hanna Oldendorff and Hannes Oldendorff (both built 2017).
Besides the latest Jiangsu Hantong contract, Oldendorff is also sitting on orders for nine kamsaramax bulkers of 82,000 dwt that are under construction at the yard. Five of the newbuildings are scheduled for delivery in 2019 and the remainder in 2020.
Meanwhile, shipbuilding sources said Jiangsu Hantong has not been active in contracting newbuildings during the first half of this year because of low shipbuilding prices and its preference for working with existing customers.
In response to the prolonged yard downturn, Jiangsu Hantong has almost halved its shipbuilding capacity since early last year.
According to Clarksons’ Shipping Intelligence Network, the shipbuilder has a total of 33 newbuildings on its orderbook.
Japan’s Nisshin Shipping is the shipyard’s largest customer with a series of 13 82,000-dwt bulker newbuildings on order.
