Nantong Tongbao Shipbuilding has signed shipbuilding agreements with joint buyers, Shanghai Dingheng Shipping and Xiamen Xiangyu Group, for the construction of eight chemical tankers worth RMB1bn ($160.95m)
The delivery of tankers sized from 2,000dwt to 15,000dwt is scheduled from 2017.
Zhu Jianhua, president of Tongbao Shipbuilding, said the order is a great opportunity for the shipyard to diverse its portfolio, as the shipbuilding market for offshore vessels is facing overcapacity amid the depression in the offshore market.
Li Duozhu, chairman of Dingheng Shipping, subsidiary of investment firm Dingheng Group, believed that the chemical tanker shipping market has started to recover from its low. He added that in line with China’s growth, demand for chemical tankers will be in an uptrend.
Li predicted that over the next 10 years, demand for chemical tankers will increase by fivefold from the current levels.
Nantong Tongbao Shipbuilding was established in 2005 and focuses on offshore vessels. This order is the first chemical tanker order for the shipyard.