Oslo-listed Siem Shipping Inc informed that it has reached an agreement with an undisclosed Japanese owner to time-charter two new reefer vessels for minimum 5 years.
The vessels will be built at the Shikoku Dockyard in Japan and will have a capacity of 650,000 cbft in their refrigerated holds, plus approximately 300 refrigerated containers on deck.
The vessels are scheduled to be delivered in the early part of 2017.
Siem Shipping said that the transaction is part of its strategy to secure modern tonnage to maintain its position as a specialized reefer operator.
Siem Shipping’s STAR Reefers, owner and operator of refrigerated vessels, directly controls 28 vessels with a total capacity of 16 million cbft.
In the first half of 2015, the company entered the car carrier market as a tonnage provider by ordering two 7,000 ceu pure car and truck carriers (PCTCs) for delivery in the second half of 2017 at the Croatian shipbuilder Uljanik.