The shipowners are fighting hard for the last available places to deliver ships from the shipyards of China and South Korea.
The slots in the two countries for 2026 are “counted on the fingers of the hand”, while those with scheduled delivery in 2027 are very limited. As for the other powerful shipbuilding nation, Japan, shipping sources told “Naftemporiki” that available delivery slots start from the first quarter of 2028, with the exception of course of some more expensive ones “reserved” for premium customers.
“The situation regarding the availability of slots is always complicated until the orders are confirmed. “Orderbook data shows significant yard space for 2027 (about 75% of global production), but brokers report that some ship types are close to being sold out,” Stuart Nicoll, Director of the British shipping analytics firm Maritime Strategies International (MSI), pointed out to “Naftemporiki.”
“The timetables for ship deliveries have increased gradually over the last years,” according to Gerard Duggan, with about 20 years of shipbuilding experience in China and South Korea. “If you don’t reserve a slot in 2024, you will miss deliveries in 2027,” he explained.
“What we see today is a manufacturer-driven market. The yards are full for the next three years with very few slots available and for those that are available a good price premium must be paid,” he noted.
Demand for large tankers
According to “Naftemporiki” sources, the shipping competition currently focuses primarily on the large sizes of tankers, Suezmax type (capacity 156,000 dwt) and VLCC (capacity 300,000 dwt). This is because the order book for new vessels in both categories is at very low levels and slots in the yards are few.
However, the same sources added that the momentum for the construction of VLACs is slowly losing its momentum, after the frantic order rally recorded from the second half of 2023 until this month.
