Chinese shipping company SITC International Holdings Co (SITC) has placed an order for eight 1,023 TEU container vessels worth a total of $153.6m at South Korean shipyard Dae Sun Shipbuilding & Engineering Co.
According to the terms of the contract signed on May 27, the first containership is set to be delivered in January 2023.
The remaining vessels, $19.2 million worth each, will be delivered in the following months of 2023, with the last being delivered in December 2023.
As disclosed, SITC has also the option to acquire additional two containerships at the same price. The options should be exercised in June 2021.
The payment, coming from the company’s internal resources and/or through external financing, will be made in five phases in accordance with the construction progress of the containerships.
“This new order will allow the company to expand its own container fleet to meet the growing demand for the company’s services,” SITC officials noted.
Due to the COVID-19 restrictions, the signing ceremony was held through a video conference call.
SITC has been active on the newbuilding market over the past few months, ordering up to ten containerships at a compatriot shipyard Yangzijiang Shipbuilding in December 2020.
The contract includes six firm orders for 2,600 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) containerships and includes options for four additional ships (2+2). The contract is worth $162 million.
The six vessels are slated for delivery in 2022 and 2023.