On April 15, COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation issued an announcement titled “Disclosure and Related-Party Transaction Regarding the Construction of Two Panamax Crude Oil Tankers.” The company and its wholly-owned subsidiary, COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation (Hainan) Co., Ltd., intend to enter into a construction contract with COSCO SHIPPING (Qidong) Offshore Co., Ltd. for two Panamax crude oil tankers, The total contract price (including taxes) amounts to 1.018 billion yuan (approximately $149 million).
The announcement states that COSCO SHIPPING (Qidong) Offshore is an affiliate of COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation. This transaction constitutes a related-party transaction and has been approved by the Company’s Board of Directors; therefore, it does not need to be submitted to the shareholders’ meeting for approval.
According to the announcement, the two vessels are 74,900 DWT Panamax crude oil tankers. The newbuilds will be equipped with clean propulsion systems, such as biofuel and methanol-ready systems, as well as energy-saving and intelligent devices. This initiative actively responds to the global trend toward carbon reduction in shipping, aligns with the company’s sustainable development strategy, and enhances the vessels’ competitiveness throughout their entire lifecycle. The two vessels are expected to be delivered and enter service by the end of October 2028 and November 2028 (or earlier).
COSCO SHIPPING Energy Transportation stated that this move will help optimize the company’s fleet structure, consolidate its market share, enhance its core competitiveness, and strengthen its customer service capabilities and operational resilience, thereby having a positive impact on the company’s long-term revenue and profitability.
It is reported that the aforementioned new ship order is COSCO SHIPPING (Qidong) Offshore’s first order this year. In May 2025, COSCO SHIPPING Group placed an order with the company for two Very Large Gas Carriers (VLGCs); in mid-December 2024, COSCO SHIPPING Group placed an order with COSCO SHIPPING (Qidong) Offshore for two Very Large Gas Carriers (VLGCs). This marked the first time COSCO SHIPPING Heavy Industry had undertaken the construction of VLGCs, successfully expanding into a new ship type.
According to official information, COSCO SHIPPING (Qidong) Offshore is a subsidiary of China Cosco Shipping Corporation Limited, located in Qidong Shipbuilding Industrial Park, Jiangsu Province. The company has a total planned shoreline of 2,030 meters and covers an area of 1 million square meters. It has “one dock, two slipways, and three wharves,” specialized production areas, and modern supporting facilities, suitable for the manufacturing of various marine engineering equipment and modules.
COSCO SHIPPING (Qidong) Offshore designs and builds products covering almost all types, from shallow to ultra-deep water, and from oil and gas platforms to offshore engineering vessels. These include China’s first cylindrical floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) project, DANA; the world’s most advanced cylindrical ultra-deepwater drilling and storage platform, SEVAN DRILLER; and the world’s first self-propelled SUPER M2 jack-up drilling platform, among many other high-end offshore engineering products. COSCO SHIPPING (Qidong) Offshore has a strong brand image in the international offshore engineering market and is a leader in offshore engineering equipment technology design in China and the world.