EuroDry, the Greek dry bulk shipowner led by Aristides Pittas, has placed an additional order for a Kamsarmax bulk carrier. This brings the total number of Kamsarmax vessels ordered under the company’s fleet renewal program to three, all of which are to be built by the same Chinese shipyard.
On October 14, EuroDry announced that it had signed a contract with Hengli Heavy Industries for the construction of a third 82,000 dwt Kamsarmax bulk carrier. The vessel is priced at approximately $37 million and is scheduled for delivery in the third quarter of 2029.
Previously, shipbuilding contracts for two of these vessels were signed in April and May 2026, with a unit cost of approximately $37 million each; they are scheduled for delivery in the first and second quarters of 2028, respectively. With this, EuroDry’s total investment in three new vessels at Hengli Heavy Industries has reached approximately $111 million.
These new vessels feature an eco-friendly design that complies with EEDI Phase 3 requirements and will be named “Nikos P”, “Christina Bel”, and “Konstantina TZ”, respectively.
Commenting on this order, Pittas, Chairman and CEO of EuroDry, stated: “The sharp rise in secondhand vessel prices is one of the reasons behind the company’s decision to place another order. We estimate that the current valuation of a five-year-old Kamsarmax bulk carrier has reached or even exceeded the price of a newbuild; therefore, given similar capital costs, a more energy-efficient new vessel is clearly a more attractive option.”
With the latest order placed at Hengli Heavy Industries, EuroDry’s newbuilding program has expanded to a total of five vessels, representing 373,000 deadweight tons (DWT) of capacity under construction, with a total contract value of approximately $182.8 million. In addition to the three vessels at Hengli Heavy Industries, the owner also placed an order in 2024 with Nantong Xiangyu Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering Co., Ltd. (Nantong Xiangyu SOE) for two 63,500 dwt bulk carriers—named “Aristeidis” and “Troboni”—which are scheduled for delivery in the second and third quarters of 2027, at a total cost of $71.8 million.
As of now, EuroDry’s fleet consists of 11 dry bulk carriers with a total deadweight tonnage of approximately 766,400 tonnes. This includes 2 Kamsarmax carriers, 6 Supramax/Ultramax carriers, and 3 older Panamax vessels delivered in 2004 and 2005. Based on the current fleet size, the delivery of 5 new vessels will expand EuroDry’s fleet to 16 dry bulk carriers, with a total deadweight tonnage of approximately 1.14 million tonnes.
In recent years, Hengli Heavy Industries has consistently attracted a number of Greek dry bulk shipowners. Companies including Star Bulk, Oceanbulk, and Laskaridis Maritime have all placed orders for Kamsarmax bulk carriers with the shipbuilder, with recent per-vessel prices falling within the $36 million to $38 million range.