The John T. Essberger Group announced that they have signed final agreements with China Merchants Jinling Shipyard Dingheng Co. Ltd to build 4 x 6,600 DWT stainless steel parcel chemical tankers with options for an additional four vessels.

The stainless steel tankers, IMO Type II, will all have dual-fuel LNG propulsion and certified Finnish/Swedish 1A ice class. They are designed to meet Essberger's high quality standards and compliance with known future environmental requirements. The new vessels will be optimized in terms of hull design and equipment, resulting in a significantly improved energy efficiency of at least 30% and the ability of using shore power connection during cargo operations.

“With this significant investment in the future, our Owners have shown their commitment and determination to deliver on their promise to offer our valued customers a long-term high quality service with a greener footprint at competitive conditions”, says Jan Eghoej, MD John T. Essberger.

The newbuildings are expected to be delivered from mid-2023 and will be operated by E&S Tankers to initiate the fleet renewal, which demonstrates full commitment to the European short-sea chemical market. E&S Tankers is pleased to be engaging in continued long-term partnerships with its customers to develop the commercial platform which will provide high flexibility and lower environmental impact through increased efficiency.

The Essberger fleet currently consists of 34 parcel chemical tankers operating in Northwest Europe and the Mediterranean seas, all under E&S Tankers activity, as well as 4 container vessels.

The newbuilding project is being subsidized by the German Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure as part of the implementation of the German government's Mobility and Fuel Strategy (MKS) with a total of EUR 1.58 million per vessel. The funding measure is coordinated by NOW GmbH.

Source: John T. Essberger Group