South Korea’s mid-sized shipbuilder DH Shipbuilding (formerly Daehan Shipbuilding) has secured its first new ship orders since going public. DH Shipbuilding described these as high-quality orders.
On September 22, DH Shipbuilding announced the signing of contracts with two shipowners for the construction of six Suezmax tankers, totaling 710 billion won (approximately $510 million). Each vessel is valued at an average of 120 billion won (approximately $86 million), with deliveries scheduled to commence in July 2027.
Four of the six new vessels are for Belgian shipowner EXMAR, with the order including four optioned vessels. The newbuilds will be 157,000 deadweight tons, capable of carrying approximately one million barrels of crude oil, and equipped with scrubbers. The remaining two vessels are for a long-standing client of DH Shipbuilding, representing a follow-on order featuring LNG-ready design.
All six new vessels are environmentally friendly vessels compliant with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Tier III (Air Pollution Prevention Phase III) and Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) Phase III standards.
Through this order, DH Shipbuilding has secured a stable order backlog equivalent to approximately 2.5 years of production capacity. A company representative stated: “It is highly significant that existing customers have placed repeat orders following this year’s vessel deliveries, while simultaneously securing our first large-scale contract with a new client.”
Data shows that DH Shipbuilding primarily constructs medium-sized vessels such as Capesize bulk carriers, Newcastlemax bulk carriers, Aframax tankers, and product tankers. The company officially listed on the Korea Exchange (KOSPI) on August 1.
In the first half of this year, DH Shipbuilding maintained a steady delivery pace of one vessel per month. According to its second-quarter earnings report, the company achieved consolidated operating revenue of 296 billion won during the reporting period, representing a 16.7% year-on-year increase. Operating profit reached 62.5 billion won, marking an 84.4% year-on-year growth.