South Korea’s DH Shipbuilding (formerly Daehan Shipbuilding) has secured additional orders for two Suezmax tankers, bringing the total number of orders signed within 10 days to eight.
Recently, DH Shipbuilding announced that after signing a contract for six Suezmax tankers totaling 710 billion KRW (approximately 510 million USD, 3.628 billion RMB) on September 22, it further signed contracts for one Suezmax tanker each with a certain shipowner and an Oceania-based shipowner on September 29 and September 30, respectively. The unit price is 244 billion KRW (approximately 86.9 million USD, 620 million RMB). These two new vessels are scheduled for delivery before July 2027.
For reference, data from Clarksons shows that the current newbuilding price for a 156,000-158,000 deadweight ton Suezmax tanker is approximately 85 million USD, a 6% decrease compared to 90 million USD during the same period last year.
The newly ordered Suezmax tankers comply with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Tier III emission regulations and the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) Phase 3 requirements. They will also be equipped with Scrubbers and have pre-installed interfaces for LNG propulsion, allowing the shipowner to convert them to LNG-fueled vessels in the future if needed.
Within just 10 days, DH Shipbuilding secured orders for eight Suezmax tankers, with a total value of approximately 680 million USD (about 4.838 billion RMB). This is also the second new ship order received by DH Shipbuilding since its listing on the Korea Exchange (KOSPI) on August 1 this year, demonstrating its competitiveness in the global medium-sized tanker market.
Although DH Shipbuilding did not disclose specific information about the shipowners, it is reported that the four Suezmax tanker orders received on September 22 came from the Belgian shipowner Exmar, and the other two orders received on the same day came from the Swiss shipowner Advantage Tankers.
In September this year, a total of 10 Suezmax crude oil carrier orders were placed globally, of which DH Shipbuilding secured eight, achieving an overwhelming order performance.
An industry insider from the Korean shipbuilding sector stated that the reasons for DH Shipbuilding’s outstanding performance in the Suezmax tanker construction field are its proven high-quality technical capabilities, stable delivery capacity, and green shipbuilding capabilities that comply with increasingly stringent environmental regulations. These competitive advantages directly translate into orders, prompting global shipowners to successively choose DH Shipbuilding.
A representative from DH Shipbuilding said: “Following the large batch of Suezmax tanker orders received on September 22, the company secured additional orders within a short period, which is the result of trust from global shipowners. The company is currently negotiating new shipbuilding contracts with multiple shipowners and expects to receive more additional orders. Based on this order performance, we will further expand our market share globally and solidify our absolute leading position in the medium-sized tanker sector.”
With the acquisition of these two new vessel orders, DH Shipbuilding has now secured a stable order backlog covering nearly three years, with a total order book value of approximately 2.7 billion USD. In the first half of this year, DH Shipbuilding maintained a conservative management policy regarding strategic order-taking, but starting in the second half of the year, it has engaged in more proactive order-taking activities in response to market changes.
Since being acquired by the Korean private equity fund KH Investment Group (KHI) in September 2022 and introducing a “new management” model, a series of measures taken by the company aimed at enhancing cost competitiveness have played a key role. After the acquisition, based on KHI’s management policy focusing on connotative development, DH Shipbuilding concentrated its marketing efforts on its main vessel types and adopted a selective order-taking strategy focused on securing high-profit orders. In 2024, DH Shipbuilding holds a market share of approximately 14% in the global medium-sized tanker market, ranking first globally.
In the first half of this year, DH Shipbuilding accumulated revenue of 603.7 billion KRW (approximately 440 million USD, 3.07 billion RMB) and accumulated an operating profit of 132.2 billion KRW (approximately 97.16 million USD, 670 million RMB), with an operating profit margin of 21.9%. This is more than 7 percentage points higher than the full-year figure for last year and ranks first among Korean shipbuilders.
Including the latest orders, data from Clarksons shows that, to date, DH Shipbuilding’s total order book stands at 25 vessels totaling 3.8778 million deadweight tons, comprising 24 Suezmax tankers and 1 LR2 tanker, with delivery schedules extending until 2028.
