Nanjing Tanker picks Dalian for LR2 quartet

China Merchants-controlled Nanjing Tanker has selected Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (DSIC) to build four more LR2 product and crude tankers, taking its planned newbuilding programme in the segment at the Chinese yard to six vessels.

The Shanghai-listed owner named DSIC as the winning bidder, following a tender launched last month.

The newbuildings will have to meet IMO Tier III emissions standards and phase three requirements of the energy efficiency design index (EEDI).

No price or delivery dates have been disclosed, and a formal shipbuilding contract signing has yet to be announced.

Nanjing Tanker already has two 115,000 dwt LR2s on order at DSIC under a contract signed in September 2025, with deliveries scheduled for August and October 2028.

The latest award puts the owner on course to triple its exposure to the larger product tanker segment.

The move adds to a wider fleet renewal drive that has seen Nanjing Tanker place a string of orders at domestic yards. The company also has two 65,000 dwt panamax crude/product tankers booked at Dalian, while in July it contracted four additional 50,000 dwt MR product/chemical carriers at Guangzhou Shipyard International for up to $182.8m.

At the end of June, Nanjing Tanker controlled 73 vessels totalling about 2.8m dwt, including 34 product tankers, with its existing product fleet predominantly made up of MR tonnage.

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