Recently, Hengli Heavy Industry signed construction contracts for Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) with several international shipping giants, securing orders for 12 ships within two weeks, with the total order value exceeding ten billion yuan.
On October 10, Guangdong Songfa Ceramics Co., Ltd. announced that the construction contracts for 6 x 306,000 dwt VLCCs from its subsidiary, Hengli Shipbuilding (Dalian) Co., Ltd., were recently signed and became effective. The counterparties to these contracts are two well-known European shipowners, with a total contract value of approximately $6-9 billion USD (approximately RMB 4.269-6.403 billion). The new vessels will be delivered successively from the second half of 2026 to the first half of 2027.
For reference, data from Clarksons shows that the current newbuilding price for a 315,000-320,000 dwt VLCC is about $126 million USD, slightly lower than the $129 million USD from the same period last year.
Although Songfa did not disclose the specific information of the shipowners, according to foreign media reports, 4 of the new vessels were ordered by Dynacom Tankers, owned by Greek shipping magnate George Procopiou; the other 2 were ordered by Greek shipowner Laskaridis Maritime.
Both companies are “old customers” of Hengli Heavy Industry. Dynacom acquired two VLCC resale vessels from Hengli Heavy Industry in early last year, with the first ship, the “ALIAKMON I”, delivered just in June this year, which was also the first VLCC built by Hengli Heavy Industry. Furthermore, George Procopiou’s dry bulk company, Sea Traders, placed an order for 10 x 82,000 dwt bulk carriers at Hengli Heavy Industry in July 2023, setting a record at the time for the largest single shipbuilding order signed by Hengli Heavy Industry. Last year, Sea Traders placed an additional order for 4 ships of the same type.
Laskaridis Maritime was one of the first overseas shipowners for Hengli Heavy Industry. In May 2023, Laskaridis Maritime signed a contract with Hengli Heavy Industry for the construction of 4 x 82,000 dwt Kamsarmax bulk carriers, which was the first overseas order received by Hengli Heavy Industry since commencing operations. At the end of the same year, the company placed an additional order for 6 ships of the same type at Hengli Heavy Industry. 3 of the total 10 ships have been delivered, and the remaining 7 will be delivered this year and next.
In addition to the aforementioned 6 VLCC orders, Hengli Heavy Industry also secured an order in September for 6 x 306,000 dwt VLCCs from Frontline, a subsidiary of Norwegian shipping magnate John Fredriksen. The cost per ship is approximately $118 million USD, with the total price for 6 ships being about $708 million USD (approximately RMB 5.037 billion). These new vessels will be delivered successively from the second half of 2026 to the first half of 2027.
It is reported that this series of 306,000 dwt VLCCs from Hengli Heavy Industry was independently developed by the company. They are internationally mainstream large crude oil carriers, featuring large loading capacity, strong endurance, and high operational efficiency. The design of this ship type balances route adaptability and loading flexibility, can efficiently match the loading and unloading equipment of major global crude oil ports, and meets the needs for transoceanic long-distance crude oil trunk line transportation and large-scale transportation from major oil fields to refineries. It is a crude oil carrier that conforms to the latest international tanker design concepts and meets the current international shipping market’s demand for large-scale, low-carbon transportation, fully demonstrating Hengli Heavy Industry’s independent innovation capability and technical strength in the field of high-end ship design.
Sources indicate that these 12 new orders are actually resale vessels from Hengli Heavy Industry. These VLCCs were originally ordered by Hengli Heavy Industry’s parent company, Hengli Group. According to Clarksons data, since the first order in 2023, Hengli Group has successively ordered 15 VLCCs from Hengli Heavy Industry. The first 2 were resold to Dynacom in early 2024, another 4 were resold to an anonymous shipowner at the end of September, and the remaining 9 currently still list Hengli Group as the owner.
Hengli Heavy Industry pointed out that this cooperation with several major shipping companies, including Norway’s Frontline, Greece’s Dynacom, and Laskaridis, further enhances Hengli Heavy Industry’s position in the international shipbuilding market and will also provide these shipping companies with high-quality, high-performance vessels to meet their business needs in the global shipping market.
As a private shipbuilding giant, Hengli Heavy Industry continues to make breakthroughs in the field of high-end shipbuilding. Relying on its advanced technological innovation and extensive shipbuilding experience, it has won the trust of many internationally renowned shipping companies. The signing of these projects not only demonstrates Hengli Heavy Industry’s strong capabilities in the shipbuilding field but also marks the further enhancement of its influence in the international shipping market.
The signing of these consecutive large orders not only helps promote the sustainable development of the shipping industry but also injects new vitality into the global shipping market. As the orders are delivered successively, Hengli Heavy Industry is expected to occupy a more important position in the global shipping market. In the future, Hengli Heavy Industry will continue to deepen cooperation with international shipping giants, persistently innovate and achieve breakthroughs in the field of high-end shipbuilding, further enhance the competitiveness of China’s shipbuilding industry in the global market, and contribute to realizing China’s transformation from a major shipbuilding country to a strong shipbuilding nation.
It is understood that the predecessor of Hengli Heavy Industry, STX Dalian, was once China’s largest foreign-invested shipyard, possessing the largest single shipyard in Northern China. In 2022, responding to the national call, Hengli Group established Hengli Heavy Industry Group, investing 2.11 billion yuan to successfully auction and acquire the long-idle (for ten years) original STX Dalian assets, aiming to fully build a world-class high-end shipbuilding base. In January 2023, the first phase of Hengli Heavy Industry, the “Ocean Factory,” achieved full operation in just 150 days. In January this year, the second-phase project—the “Future Factory”—achieved operational status within 5 months. Meanwhile, the Hengli Heavy Industry Cooperation Innovation and Offshore Engineering Technology Industrial Park commenced construction on September 14 in Changxing Island, Dalian.
As of now, Hengli Heavy Industry has commenced construction on over 60 vessels and holds a total orderbook of approximately 170 ships, scheduled for production until 2029. Once all Hengli Heavy Industry series projects reach full production capacity, they will enable the annual construction of over 150 ultra-large vessels and the production of 180 marine engines, including G95 main engines and models below, while achieving full coverage of LNG, LPG, methanol, and ammonia dual-fuel options. It is set to become the world’s largest single-site shipbuilding base with the most complete supporting facilities.
