China’s Nantong Xiangyu Shipbuilding and Offshore has entered into shipbuilding contracts for ten 3,850dwt tankers with GEFO Shipping.

South Korean shipbuilder Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) has secured a contract to construct 15 LNG carriers for KRW4.57 trillion ($3.44 billion).

A joint venture between Stolt-Nielsen and NYK Line has ordered six 38,000 dwt chemical tankers at Nantong Xiangyu Shipyard in China.

The forecast return of VLCC newbuilding orders would appear to have taken off with Dalian Shipbuilding Industry (DSIC) announcing that the company has contracted up to 14 newbuild orders from two European owners.

South Korea shipbuilder HD Hyundai is moving forward with plans to develop small modular nuclear reactors for shipping with TerraPower, Southern Company, and Core Power.

Neptune Lines is further expanding its fleet through the Genesis Project and is to build two more LNG-fuelled PCTCs from China’s Fujian Mawei Shipbuilding.

Greek shipowner TMS Cardiff Gas has inked a long-term contract with Singapore shipyard group Seatrium for LNG carrier repairs and upgrades.

Container carriers have shifted to a much greater proportion of owned tonnage in the newbuild ordering spree in the past few years but whether that will reduce costs versus chartered-in tonnage remains open to question.

CSSC Qingdao Beihai Shipbuilding have inked retrofit project to install methanol propulsion on a CMA CGM container ship.