The shipping company Capital Maritime & Trading, owned by the Greek company Evangelos Marinakis, is expanding its fleet with eleven new tankers. The order is part of a larger order for Hengli Heavy Industries.
The eleven ships are tankers in the VLCC size class (306,000 tdw). They will be built by Hengli Heavy Industries, as announced by the Chinese parent company Songfa Ceramics. The new order continues the existing cooperation between Capital and the Chinese shipyard; Marinakis has previously had VLCCs built here.
The Greek company is one of the most active players in the newbuilding sector. In recent years, Capital has ordered oil tankers as well as new gas tankers, container ships and multipurpose supply vessels (MSVs) for its subsidiary Capital Offshore, which was only founded in 2023.
The new ships are due to be delivered at the end of the 2020s. They will be chartered under the umbrella of Capital Ship Management via individual shipping companies.
Marinakis’ new tankers make up the majority of an order for a total of 15 new VLCCs to be built by Hengli. In addition to Capital as the main customer, an “undisclosed but well-known” European shipowner is also participating in the order with four newbuildings, according to the shipyard. The total value of the 15 ships is estimated at between 1.7 and 2 billion dollars.
China dominates global shipbuilding
Yang Chen, editor-in-chief of China’s Xinde Marine, commented that Capital’s order is “remarkable” as it underlines the continued preference of established shipowners for shipyards with series production capacity and guaranteed delivery. Hengli, one of the largest players in the already globally dominant shipbuilding market in China, has a total order volume of 45 vessels and two options, including tankers, bulkers and container ships, with the 15 newbuildings.
In addition to Capital, this includes Dynacom Tankers and Minerva Marine, both also from Greece, as well as Seatankers Management, which belongs to the Norwegian shipping giant John Fredriksen.
China has become the world’s largest shipbuilding nation in recent decades. Almost two thirds of all new ships are built at Chinese shipyards. South Korea takes second place with around 20% of orders, followed by Japan. Large companies in both countries – HD Hyundai in South Korea and Imabari in Japan – recently announced plans to strengthen their own capacities. In addition to the established giants, India, as an emerging nation in the maritime industry, is also pursuing ambitious plans to become one of the top 5 shipbuilding nations by the middle of the century.
