China’s New Times is boosting its shipbuilding capacity to accommodate a surge in orders that has seen it seal $5.7bn in new business.
Sources said the Jiangsu-based shipyard has secured orders for up to 32 LNG dual-fuel container ship newbuildings to be built at a new dry dock.
The first vessel from the new dock is expected to delivered in 2027.
Its move comes in the same week as China’s Singapore-listed Yangzijiang Shipbuilding announced its plans to invest $413m in a new shipbuilding facility to build LNG and other clean-energy vessels.
Privately owned New Times will be adding one mega-sized dry dock that will allow it to build two full VLCCs side by side and another two half VLCCs behind them, also side by side.
Shipbuilding sources added that New Times had received state approval for the dock and work is expected to start soon.
The investment required is not known. New Times will be equipped with four dry docks once the new one is built.
Officials at New Times declined to comment on any of the shipyard’s activity when contacted by TradeWinds.
Four shipping companies — Capital Trading & Maritime, Eastern Pacific Shipping, SFL Corp and Seaspan Corp — are behind the boxship orders.
Greek shipowner Evangelos Marinakis’ Capital has inked up to 10 newbuildings, comprising six firm 8,400-teu vessels plus four options, as TradeWinds reported last week.
Idan Ofer’s Eastern Pacific Shipping has penned eight firm 18,000-teu ships and holds options for four more.
John Fredriksen-controlled SFL Corp and Canadian boxship tonnage provider Seaspan Corp have each booked five ships each of 16,000 teu.
Sources said Capital’s 8,400-teu vessels will be the first batch of newbuildings that will be rolling out of New Time’s new dry dock, as the delivery date for the sextet is scheduled for the first quarter of 2027.
This will be the second notable expansion of New Times.
The first was in the 2005 shipbuilding boom when it added one dry dock of 588 metres by 106 metres.
Yangzijiang disclosed this week it has signed an agreement with the local government of Jingjiang City to acquire an extra land area of 866,671 square metres for the establishment of a new clean-energy ship manufacturing base.
It added that the new shipbuilding base is located adjacent to Jiangsu Yangzi Xinfu Shipbuilding, which enabled the company to “seamlessly integrate new facilities, thereby enhancing both productivity and operational efficiency”.
