Oman’s Asyad Shipping has returned to a South Korean shipbuilder to order additional vessels, bringing the total number of ships in the newbuilding program launched two months ago to eight.
Market sources indicate that Asyad Shipping has placed a follow-up order with HD Hyundai Heavy Industries for two 50,000 DWT MR product tankers. The vessels are priced at approximately $51.8 million each—bringing the total order value to around $103.6 million—and are scheduled for delivery in 2029. Funding for these two additional vessels will be secured through a combination of existing cash reserves and debt.
Asyad Shipping announced that its two latest newbuild orders are backed by five-year time charter contracts with an unnamed global energy company. This brings the company’s total orders placed with HD Hyundai Heavy Industries this year to eight 50,000 DWT MR product tankers; the initial six vessels—ordered in July 2026—also secured five-year time charter agreements. The total cost for the eight new vessels is approximately $411.6 million, with all deliveries scheduled for 2029.
Since its listing on the Muscat Stock Exchange in March 2025, Asyad Shipping has focused on expanding its fleet capacity through a combination of newbuild orders and secondhand vessel acquisitions, while simultaneously securing carriage contracts for many of these acquired vessels.
By the end of 2025, Asyad Shipping had secured charter contracts worth $2.2 billion—extending beyond 2030—for its fleet of 91 vessels (including those under construction and pending delivery); an additional 11 vessels are scheduled to join the fleet in 2026 and 2027.
Asyad Shipping’s fleet expansion strategy for 2026 extends beyond the tanker sector. In April, the company entered a new market by acquiring two Kamsarmax bulk carriers built in 2023 for a total of $72.7 million; the following month, it purchased two 100,309 DWT “Baby Capesize” bulk carriers for $75.8 million, both of which came with three-year charters to international dry bulk operators.
The announcement of these new orders will further strengthen Asyad Shipping’s already substantial fleet of product tankers. According to the latest fleet data, the shipping company currently operates a fleet of more than 90 vessels, including tankers, dry bulk carriers, liquefied gas carriers, and container ships, with a total carrying capacity of approximately 11.4 million deadweight tons, including 35 product tankers.