Cosco Dalian Shipyard has won a $296m order with Chipolbrok (the Chinese-Polish Joint Stock Shipping Co) for six heavy-lift ships designed to carry project cargo.
The new ships will have two cranes giving a single-lift capacity of 640 tonnes when used together.
Deliveries of the 30,000-dwt ships are set to begin at the end of 2008 and continue through 2011. Four similar ships were ordered in 2001 for some $100m and delivered in 2004. In all, the company will have 18 crane-equipped ships in its fleet after the newly ordered ships are delivered.
Sun told the Chinese paper that Middle East demand is growing and Chipolbrok plans to start new services for project moves into the Persian Gulf.