On July 8, HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE), the intermediate holding company for HD Hyundai Group’s shipbuilding business, announced that it has signed a contract with an Oceania shipping company to build four container ships. The total order value is 834.8 billion won (about US$600 million), and the cost of each ship is about 208.7 billion won (about US$152.8 million).
Although HD KSOE did not disclose the shipowner information, according to industry sources, the order came from Sinokor Merchant Marine. The new ships will be 13,000 TEU class, with HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and HD Hyundai Samho each building two ships, which are expected to be delivered by March 31, 2028, and June 30, 2028, respectively.
Including the latest orders, HD KSOE has received 80 new ships worth US$11.11 billion this year, achieving approximately 61.5% of its annual order target of US$18.05 billion.
By ship type, it includes 5 liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, 6 LNG bunkering vessels, 8 liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)/ammonia carriers, 2 ethane carriers, 48 container ships, and 11 tankers.
According to previous reports, Sinokor Merchant Marine and British shipowner Zodiac Maritime are jointly promoting this new shipbuilding project. In addition to the four confirmed orders, the project also includes options for two more ships of the same type, but the shipyard has not yet disclosed any information about the option ships. It is reported that Sinokor Merchant Marine and Zodiac Maritime are discussing the long-term leasing of the new ships to South Korea’s HMM.
The specific specifications of the ships have not yet been disclosed, but industry insiders speculate that, considering the price of the ships, this series of container ships may be equipped with desulfurization devices rather than dual-fuel propulsion systems. If LNG dual-fuel propulsion is adopted, each ship will incur an additional cost of US$20 million to US$25 million, reaching US$170 million to US$175 million.
According to public information, Sinokor Merchant Marine is one of South Korea’s major shipping companies. Founded in 1989 and headquartered in South Korea, it is known for establishing direct container shipping routes between China and South Korea. Currently, the company ranks among the top five South Korean shipping companies in terms of total transport capacity, with routes covering Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Japan, South Korea, and the Russian Far East.
Sinokor Merchant Marine is the 19th largest liner shipping operator with a fleet of 75 ships and a total container capacity of 141,085 TEU. It currently operates 72 owned ships and 3 chartered ships. Upon delivery, the new ships will become the largest container ship in Sinokor Merchant Marine’s fleet.