Oman Shipping inks deal for two new eco-friendly crude carriers

Conrad Prabhu -
Muscat, JAN 18 -
Oman Shipping Company (OSC), the wholly government-owned national shipping line of the Sultanate of Oman, has announced that it has signed a deal with South Korean shipyard Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) for the construction of two next-generation, eco-friendly Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs).
The announcement came in a post tweeted by OSC on Thursday. It said the pair of ECO VLCCs will be built at the Okpo shipyard of DSME, which counts among the world’s largest shipbuilders.
“The vessels are of 336-metres length, 60-metres wide, and can each carry 300,000 tonnes of crude; these are next generation eco-friendly vessels that meet the environmental regulation standards of IMO (The International Maritime Organisation). Both vessels will be built with DSME’s high-end engine efficiency and fuel-saving technologies,” OSC stated.
The newbuildings, scheduled for delivery in the fourth quarter of 2020, will bolster OSC’s fleet of Very Large Crude Carriers, effectively positioning the company as a major player in the transportation of crude oil in regional and international markets. OSC is ranked 13th in the world order of VLCC owners with 15 vessels managed commercially through its subsidiary, Oman Charter Company (OCC).
Importantly, the new VLCCs on order from DSME will meet a key environmental requirement of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), which obligates all ocean-going vessels to switch to clean fuels by January 2020. Under the so-called IMO 2020 regulation, large vessels can only use fuel with a maximum sulphur content of 0.5 per cent, down from the current cap of 3.5 per cent.
Consequently, with the incorporation of DSME’s fuel efficient technologies in the design and construction of the two VLCCs, Oman Shipping also stands to gain from energy savings in the operation of these eco-friendly vessels.
Around a third of OSC’s well-diversified fleet of roughly 50 vessels is made of VLCCs, which the company has sought to leverage by setting up a new commercial chartering desk within OSC. The spot chartering desk set up in May 2017 offers VLCCs to major traders and charterers transporting crude and fuel oil worldwide.
OSC is owned by the Government of Sultanate of Oman through Asyad Group and Oman Oil Company SAOC. Commencing operations with a fleet of LNG vessels, the company has since added VLCCs, Product Tankers, Chemical Tankers, LPG Carriers, Very Large Ore Carriers (VLOCs), Bulk Carriers, multi-purpose vessels and a containership as well to its expanding fleet.