Trans KA Tanker Management of Turkey is renewing its fleet by ordering a series of MR1 product carriers in China.
The shipping arm of Akbasoglu Holdings has ordered four 40,800-dwt vessels at Wuhu Shipyard.
The contract is believed to be Trans Ka’s first newbuilding deal in China in 20 years.
Wuhu Shipbuilding said it is scheduled to deliver the quartet in 2027. It did not disclose the price.
The 180-metre-long, 32-metre-wide product tankers have been designed by Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute. Built to the latest IMO NOx Tier III rules and Energy Efficiency Design Index Phase 3 requirements, they will be classed by Bureau Veritas.
Trans Ka is believed to have ordered the vessels as part of its fleet renewal plan. The company owns six MR1 tankers, one built in 2001, four in 2006 and one in 2007.
The last time it ordered newbuildings in China was in 2005, when it contracted Zhejiang Jingang Shipbuilding to build a 16,600-dwt bulk carrier for delivery in 2006. The company sold the handysize — then named Ormi — in 2014 for $4m.
Trans Ka entered the MR1 tanker sector in November 2021 and built its fleet by acquiring secondhand vessels. Before this, it managed small chemical tankers, several of which it had ordered to its own account.
Its last purchase of secondhand MR1 tonnage was in April when it spent $20.5m on Italian shipowner Gestioni Armatoriali’s 37,300-dwt San Carlos (renamed Lydia KA, built 2007).
Trans KA was established in 1972 by Ali Kemal Akbasoglu, who handed the company over to his sons Emin and Metin in 1986.
