Norwegian shipowner Arne Blysta has placed an order with China's Penglai Zhongbai Jinglu Shipbuilding for the construction of three 3000 TEU container ships to expand its container ship fleet.

This order marks the first time in the past three years that Arne Blysta has ordered newbuild container ships. These new vessels are scheduled for delivery in 2027, will be conventionally powered, with a total cost of approximately $130 million (equivalent to 934 million RMB), and an individual vessel price of about $43.3 million.

Zhongjin has learned that the current price for a new 2600/2900 TEU container ship is around $45 million, representing a 12% increase from $41.25 million in the same period last year.

These three new ships will become the largest container ships in Arne Blysta's fleet. According to Clarkson's data, Arne Blysta currently operates seven container ships through its subsidiary Songa Box, with the largest being the two 2592 TEU feeder vessels "Puerto Limon Express" (built in 2009) and "Santa Marta Express" (built in 2010).

Founded in April 2006, Jinglu Shipbuilding belongs to the state-controlled Qingdao Rongfa Group and is a large modern shipbuilding enterprise. The company's primary business is the manufacturing of ships and marine engineering equipment, with extensive shipbuilding facilities including a 300,000-ton dry dock, a lifting floating dock, outfitting quays, and specialized shipbuilding equipment.

As of now, Jinglu Shipbuilding has orders for 43 vessels totaling 2.8578 million deadweight tons, including 29 tankers, 8 container ships, and 6 bulk carriers, with delivery schedules extending to 2028.