COSCO strengthens Newcastlemax newbuilding footprint with four more ships

Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Co (DSIC), a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corp, disclosed via its social media account on 12 November multiple new orders, including four 210,000-dwt Newcastlemaxes with domestic interests as counterparties.

Shipbroking and market sources have identified COSCO as the end operator of these vessels. According to these sources, the contracts were signed with leasing companies, and the vessels will be chartered to COSCO.

This marks COSCO’s second Newcastlemax newbuilding project since July, when it contracted COSCO Shipping Heavy Industry Zhoushan and CSSC’s Qingdao Beihai Shipbuilding to build 10 vessels of 210,000 dwt.

Chinese players continue to dominate the Newcastlemax sector, signing orders for newbuilds while actively acquiring secondhand vessels across all age groups.

COSCO–DSIC partnership

COSCO has also partnered with DSIC on the construction of six VLCCs, part of its broader US$1.7Bn shipbuilding strategy, which includes 23 Kamsarmaxes to be built at Dalian COSCO Shipping Heavy Industry.

As noted, DSIC has disclosed contracts for around 30 vessels spanning the bulk carrier, tanker and container vessel segments. Among these, CMA CGM’s order for 10 LNG dual-fuel ultra-large container ships stands out.

Chinese media report that, based on these contracts, DSIC’s main production slots are now scheduled for 2029–2030, underscoring the shipyard’s long-term workload and capacity planning.