Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp (NSSMC) is behind an order for nine very large ore carriers (VLOC) in Japan as it seeks to replace its capesize fleet with larger ships.
The move will add to concerns of even more overtonnaging following news of a prospective order by Chinese shipping companies for a series of Valemax newbuildings.
Shipping sources say NSSMC — Japan’s largest Japanese steel producer — has fixed a series of 240,000-dwt and 250,000-dwt ore carrier newbuildings recently contracted by domestic companies on a long-term charter basis.
