Greek shipowner Evangelos Marinakis is stepping up his tanker expansion, with Capital Maritime and Trading signing contracts for 11 VLCC newbuildings at China’s Hengli Heavy Industry. The order forms part of a wider package disclosed by Songfa Ceramics, the parent company of the Dalian-based shipbuilder, covering 15 VLCCs of 306,000 dwt. The total contract value for the batch is put at between $1.7bn and $2bn. Marinakis-linked entities are taking 11 of the ships, with the remaining four going to an undisclosed European owner. Based on prevailing market pricing, the Capital portion of the deal is estimated at around $1.4bn. The vessels are understood to be contracted through single-ship companies under the Capital Ship Management umbrella. VLCCs have emerged as the favoured play in the current newbuilding cycle. Owners have been drawn by firm charter rates, a steadily ageing global fleet and a wave of secondhand buying earlier in the cycle, including Sinokor Maritime’s large-scale acquisitions in the sector. For Capital, the latest contracts mark a return to Hengli, where the group already has VLCCs under construction and further strengthens the yard’s growing position as a go-to builder for Greek tanker owners. The order also adds to Capital’s already sizeable pipeline across tankers, gas carriers and containerships. Marinakis’ group has remained one of the most active Greek players in the newbuilding market, continuing to commit to large, modern tonnage across multiple segments. With deliveries stretching into the latter part of the decade, the 11-ship VLCC order signals Capital’s confidence in longer-term crude trade fundamentals — and keeps Hengli firmly in the spotlight as Chinese yards tighten their grip on the supertanker orderbook. googletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1_95_0_1_2'); }); TagsGreece