SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Singapore's Ocean Tankers said it has ordered six handy-sized tankers to be built at the Fujian Mawei Shipbuilding for an undisclosed sum as the company renews and expands its fleet.
The order is for 23,500-deadweight ton (dwt) tankers that can carry crude, clean or dirty oil products, to be delivered in stages by the end of the decade, a company spokeswoman said.
It includes an option for Ocean Tankers to receive another four of such tankers, she added. The latest order brings the total number of new vessels that Ocean Tankers has ordered to 28, with 12 more optional units.
In the past 1-1/2 years, Ocean Tankers ordered twenty-two 11,000-dwt IMO Type II oil and chemical tankers at three Chinese shipyards that will be delivered in stages up to late 2019. The company has an option to take delivery of another eight units."These vessels have been ordered for fleet renewal purposes, as well as what we see to be an opportunity to trade more of these types of ships," the spokeswoman said in an e-mail.
Ocean Tankers, part of private oil-trading company Hin Leong Group in Singapore, owns 136 vessels, including 15 Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC), with a total capacity of more than 7.7 million dwt.
Its subsidiary Ocean Bunkering Services is also expanding its bunker barge fleet as it eyes opportunities to sell more ship fuel in Singapore, the world's largest marine refueling market.