Greek shipowner Samos Steamship has ordered two more aframax tankers at Sumitomo Heavy Industries in Japan.
Samos now has three aframaxes on order at the yard. It booked a single 112,000-dwt unit last year, for delivery in the second quarter of 2022.
The latest order involves a larger 115,000-dwt design with engines that will run on conventional fuel oil. The ships will be built as LNG ready, which will give the Greek shipowner the option to upgrade to LNG fuel.
Delivery of the newbuildings is scheduled from Sumitomo’s Yokosuka shipyard in the second and third quarters of 2023.
No price been disclosed for the latest newbuildings. Broker Clarksons estimates that standard 115,000-dwt newbuildings are valued at around $54.5m.
Aframax tanker prices have increased by around 5.4% over the last three months, according to the broker's figures.
Samos has confirmed the order on its website’s list of newbuildings.
Samos has a long-standing relationship with Sumitomo, where it has previously built two panamax bulkers, a suezmax tanker and eight aframaxes. Samos also currently has a 301,000-dwt VLCC on order at Japan Marine United.
Sumitomo has focussed its shipbuilding business on the serial production of aframax tankers at its Yokosuka shipyard.
The Samos contract will boost Sumitomo's order backlog to nine aframax tankers, which will keep the Yokosuka yard busy through to the autumn of 2023.
Earlier this year, Finland's Lundqvist Rederierna, another long-standing Sumitomo customer, ordered two 112,000-dwt aframax tankers at the shipyard.
