On November 28, Hanwha Ocean announced the signing of a contract with South Korean shipowner Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) to build four 13,000 TEU LNG dual-fuel container ships. The order is valued at approximately 1.07 trillion won (about $729.8 million) and is scheduled for delivery to the shipowner by February 2029.
With the latest orders, Hanwha Ocean has secured orders for 41 new vessels worth approximately $7.7 billion this year, including 17 Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs), 17 container ships, 6 LNG carriers, and 1 icebreaker research vessel.
As early as October this year, HMM announced it would order 12 LNG dual-fuel container ships with a capacity of 13,000 TEU. An additional eight vessels will be jointly constructed by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and HD Hyundai Samho, with the former building two and the latter six.
HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering (HD KSOE) announced on November 24 a major order for eight dual-fuel container ships from HMM. The total order value reached 2.13 trillion won (approximately $1.44 billion), marking the largest single container ship order in HD KSOE’s history since the shipbuilding industry’s supercycle in 2007—a record set 18 years ago.
Meanwhile, this order also marks the shipowner’s first newbuilding investment in approximately one year since announcing its 2030 Mid-to-Long-Term Strategy in September 2024. The investment aims to advance key strategic priorities, including expanding the environmental fleet through increased capacity and accelerating the transition to alternative fuels, while strengthening the global route network layout.
HMM stated that this series of container ships aims to further enhance the competitiveness of its eco-friendly fleet. Currently, the company’s fleet includes nine methanol dual-fuel powered container ships and two LNG dual-fuel ships that are either in operation or under construction.