Mercuria Energy Trading has signed up for a fresh pair of very large crude carriers in China.
The Swiss trader and charterer has struck a deal worth $240m with China State Shipbuilding Corporation for the construction of one owned and one chartered-in VLCC newbuild.
The 300,000 dwt ships will be conventionally fueled and built at Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding, according to brokers.
Mercuria was founded in Geneva in 2004 by Swiss traders Marco Dunand and Daniel Jaeggi, and today it controls a fleet of about 40 ships.
The company, which has mostly backed newbuilding projects via long-term charters, will see its first-owned new VLCC delivered in 2027.
