HANJIN HEAVY INDUSTRIES

- The orders to construct 4 suezmax tankers and 4 capesize bulk carriers are worth US $450 million
- Won orders for a total of 11 large vessels so far this year
- Another example of the global competitiveness of HHIC-Phil’s Subic Shipyard

On April 7, HHIC-Phil announced that it signed contracts worth a total of US $450 million to construct 4 tankers (160,000 DWT) and 4 bulk carriers (180,000 DWT) with Chinese, Singapore and Greek shipping companies.

The company had already won contracts to build two capesize bulk carriers (180,000 DWT) in January and another in February. It has won orders for 11 vessels in total so far this year. The company said that more negotiations are under way.

This is the first time HHIC-Phil signed a contract to build Suezmax tankers. It is expected that this successful bid will be helpful in winning additional Suezmax tanker contracts. After winning orders for 7 capesize bulk carriers this year, Hanjin’s advanced technology and capacity have been praised by the world. In addition, the company has been able to reduce manufacturing costs.

Specifically, HHIC-Phil signed a contract to build 4 Suezmax tankers (160,000 DWT) with Tanker Pacific in Singapore, 2 bulk carriers (180,000 DWT) with Henghou in China and 2 bulk carriers (180,000 DWT) with Star Bulk Carrier Corp. in Greece.

The state-of-the-art bulk carriers measure 292m in length, 45m in width, 25m in height, and has a speed of 15.5 knots. They will be delivered in the second half of 2011 while the double-hull tankers which measure 274m in length, 48m in width, 23.5m in height and has a speed of 15.7 knots, will be delivered from March 2012.

According to industry reports, HHIC-Phil has emerged as a new leader in the capesize bulk carrier and large tanker markets. Yeongdo Shipyard is too small to handle these large vessels.

HHIC-Phil’s Subic Shipyard’s advantages include excellent geographical location, large space (2.6M㎡, 10 times the size of Yeongdo Shipyard), advanced facilities and abundant labor at low costs (about one-tenth of Korean labor costs). In addition, it has one of the world’s largest dock (Dock 6) which has been in full operation since last year.

An official from HHIC-Phil said that Subic Shipyard, together with Yeongdo Shipyard, which is undergoing a modernization program for building high-value added vessels and HHIC’s R&D Center in Busan, will play a pivotal role in establishing Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction as the world’s most efficient shipyard.

HHIC-Phil’s Subic Shipyard is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities including a 370m long Dock 5 and 550m long Dock 6, 4km long quay, four ultra large gantry cranes and 1km long automated assembly lines. The company has an order backlog that is worth 2.5 years of work.