According to World Maritime News, the Japanese company Nisshin Shipping has ordered up to 25 new ships from Chinese
and Japanese ship-builders, as it pushes forward with plan s to modernise its fleet.

The orders, estimated to be worth around $666 million, includes four small chemical tankers, seven Ultramax bulk carriers, and 14 Panamax ‘bulkers’.

Japan’s Oshima Shipbuilding won the most orders, with seven 62,000 DWT (dead-weight tonnage) Panamax bulkers
and seven 82,000 DWT Ultramax bulk carriers.

The Panamaxes are valued at $25 million apiece, while the Panamaxes are valued at $27 million each, bringing the total order value for the yard to $364 million. Deliveries are scheduled to start in 2019 and be completed by 2021.

The Japanese ship-builder Usuki Zosensho has secured an order for four 21,000m³ chemical tankers of 19,700 DWT (worth $33.5 million each), while China’s Jiangsu Nantong Ship Heavy Industry will supply the remaining seven 82,000 DWT bulkers (worth $24 million each).