Under the overall guidance of the group’s “ensuring quality and promoting production” policy, Hantong Ship Heavy Industry achieved significant progress in production work in July, securing new orders for 7 large vessels.
**Trafigura Orders 2 VLCCs**
Hantong Ship Heavy Industry has received another order from commodity trading company Trafigura for two 319,000 DWT VLCCs. Including the latest order, Trafigura has now ordered up to 8 VLCCs from Hantong Ship. This series of vessels features ammonia-ready design and is equipped with scrubbers.
Trafigura signed its first contract with Hantong Ship Heavy Industry for two VLCCs in early last year, marking Trafigura’s first owned VLCCs and Hantong Ship’s first VLCC order. Subsequently, Trafigura ordered four more vessels of the same type. The first two VLCCs are scheduled for delivery in 2026, followed by the remaining four in 2027.
According to earlier estimates by shipbrokers, the cost per VLCC in this batch does not exceed $120 million (approximately RMB 864 million). For reference, Clarksons data shows that the current price of a new 315,000-320,000 DWT VLCC is about $126 million, down 2% from $129 million in the same period last year.
It is understood that Trafigura is one of the world’s leading independent commodity trading and logistics companies, headquartered in Singapore, primarily dealing in base metals and energy, including oil. As one of the largest global traders of metals and minerals, the Trafigura Group sources, stores, blends, and delivers raw materials and commodities worldwide. In 2020, Trafigura traded a total of 268 million tons of oil and petroleum products and ranked 27th on the Fortune Global 500 list.
**MSC Orders 3 × 22,000 TEU Containerships**
Following last year’s order for 12 LNG dual-fuel ultra-large containerships, Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) recently placed an additional order with Hantong Ship Heavy Industry for three LNG dual-fuel 22,000 TEU vessels. According to Clarksons, these three new vessels are scheduled for delivery in 2029.
This order is part of MSC’s recent procurement of 18 LNG dual-fuel ultra-large containerships from five Chinese shipyards. It is reported that these 20,000 TEU LNG dual-fuel vessels are among the largest of their kind globally, with an estimated unit price of approximately $230 million (around RMB 1.656 billion).
For reference, Clarksons data indicates that the current price of a new 24,000 TEU LNG dual-fuel containership is about $273 million (approximately RMB 1.958 billion), roughly unchanged from $272 million in the same period last year.
MSC is the world’s largest container shipping company. According to the latest data from Alphaliner, MSC currently operates a fleet of 929 vessels, making it the first container shipping company to surpass 900 ships. Its existing fleet includes 652 owned vessels and 277 chartered vessels, with a total capacity of 6.73 million TEU and a market share of 20.7%. It is also the only container shipping company globally with a capacity exceeding 6 million TEU.
Additionally, MSC has 128 new vessels under construction, totaling 2.16 million TEU, also ranking first globally. Its orderbook accounts for about 32% of its existing fleet, and the scale of its orderbook alone exceeds the total fleet capacity of Ocean Network Express (ONE), currently ranked sixth globally (approximately 2.1 million TEU).
Last year, MSC ordered 58 containerships from Chinese shipyards, all with capacities of 10,000 TEU or above. These included 10 × 21,000 TEU and 10 × 24,000 TEU from Hengli Heavy Industry, 12 × 21,000 TEU from Hantong Ship Heavy Industry, 12 × 19,000 TEU from Zhoushan Changhong International, 6 × 21,000 TEU from Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding, and 8 × 11,500 TEU from Penglai Jinglu Shipbuilding.
Entering 2025, MSC has continued its ordering spree. In February, MSC signed an additional order with Changhong International for four 21,700 TEU LNG dual-fuel containerships. In April, MSC placed another order with Hengli Heavy Industry for six 22,000 TEU LNG dual-fuel vessels. In June, MSC added four 21,700 TEU dual-fuel vessels at Changhong International and four 21,000 TEU dual-fuel vessels at Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding. In July, MSC further ordered two more vessels of the same type at Changhong International, three 21,000 TEU dual-fuel vessels each at Hantong Ship Heavy Industry and China Merchants Heavy Industry (Jiangsu), and two additional 22,000 TEU dual-fuel vessels at Hengli Heavy Industry.
**Kmarine Orders 2 × 210,000 DWT Bulk Carriers**
In addition to the above orders, Hantong Ship Heavy Industry also secured an order from Kmarine in July for two 210,000 DWT Newcastlemax bulk carriers.
For reference, Clarksons data shows that the current price of a new 205,000-210,000 DWT conventional-fuel Newcastlemax bulk carrier is approximately $77 million (around RMB 554 million), down 4% from $80 million in the same period last year.
While securing new vessel orders, Hantong Ship Heavy Industry also signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with South Korea’s KCH Group on July 29 for strategic cooperation on an offshore wind turbine installation vessel (WTIV) project. This marks another step into the South Korean offshore wind market after developing Vietnam’s offshore wind sector.
It is understood that Jiangsu Hantong Ship Heavy Industry Co., Ltd. is a large-scale ship and offshore platform manufacturer established in 2003. It boasts 1,000 meters of natural deep-water coastline along the Yangtze River, covering an area of approximately 800,000 square meters, with an annual steel processing capacity of 150,000 tons. Its main facilities include three slipways (50,000-ton and 80,000-ton classes), a 120,000-square-meter hull and pipe processing workshop, a 18,000-square-meter painting center (one-spray-two-coat and two-spray-four-coat systems), and supporting outfitting docks.
Hantong Ship Heavy Industry maintains a steady business approach and has earned the trust of customers with its high-quality products. Its main products focus on bulk carriers, tankers, and offshore equipment. The bulk carrier series ranges from 38,000 to 208,000 DWT, while the tanker series covers MR, LR1, LR2, Suezmax, and VLCC vessels.
According to Clarksons, Hantong Ship Heavy Industry currently has an orderbook of 102 vessels totaling 11.717 million DWT, including 77 bulk carriers, 10 tankers, and 15 containerships, with deliveries scheduled up to 2029.
