Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) has increased its order intake this year to a total of 25 ships, following the 16-vessel order reported earlier in July 2023 from Evergreen.
The value of the latest order is KRW 3,959.3bn, which, according to SHI, is the largest ever for a single shipbuilding contract. This broke the previous record (12 LNG carriers, KRW 3.331 trillion) set by SHI in June 2022. The 16 Evergreen 16,000 TEU containerships are scheduled to be delivered by December 2027.
SHI says its total orderbook now amounts to US$ 33.6bn, and the latest contract means that it has already achieved two-thirds of its annual target.
The latest contract is for methanol-ready ships, reflecting what SHI considers to be a market trend towards methanol (CH3OH) after LNG as an eco-friendly fuel. SHI expects to further strengthen its competitiveness in the eco-friendly ship market in the future.
A company official said: “Based on the solid order backlog, we will continue to prioritise profitability of vessels in contract acquisitions. If we win contracts for LNG carriers and FLNG projects, which are expected to be ordered in the second half, there won’t be any significant challenges in reaching our order goals for three consecutive years.”
The use of methanol fuel can, according to SHI, reduce SOx emissions by 99%, NOx by 80%, and CO2 by more than 20%, compared to the traditional bunker C heavy oil.
