This Year's Shipbuilding Orders Estimated at 588 Vessels

The number of vessels to be ordered this year is estimated at 588, 92 more than last year's.

Clarksons Research reported on Jan. 27 that a total of 588 merchant vessels are expected to be ordered this year, 92 more than last year’s estimate. The 588 vessels are expected to include 210 tankers, 220 bulk carriers, 60 container ships, 55 LNG carriers and 40 LPG carriers.

In the meantime, Hyundai Mipo Dockyard signed a 157.4 billion won contract with Pan Ocean on Jan. 21 to supply four 50,000-ton petrochemical product carriers and Hyundai Samho Heavy Industries signed a 109.2 billion won contract with a European shipowner on Jan. 21 to supply a 300,000-ton oil tanker. Hyundai Heavy Industries Group is aiming to conclude contracts worth US$15.9 billion this year, up 22 percent from a year ago.

Samsung Heavy Industries has recently completed the construction of the world’s first LNG dual-fuel propulsion shuttle tanker. The company announced on Jan. 20 that it has delivered the 130,000-ton tanker to Teekay Offshore from its Geoje Shipyard. The shuttle tanker is characterized by reducing sulfur oxide emissions by 85 percent, nitrogen oxide emissions by 98 percent and fine dust emissions by 98 percent as compared with existing vessels.

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering is planning to sign contracts worth US$7.21 billion this year. It is more than the size of the contracts it signed last year.

Last year, South Korean shipbuilders topped the global market by accounting for 9.43 million CGT out of 25.29 million CGT. In the first half, Chinese shipbuilders took up 4.68 million CGT to beat them by a margin of 1.1 million CGT. However, they succeeded in beating their Chinese rivals for the second consecutive year.

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