$141.8m. That's the contract value Precious Shipping has committed to Taizhou Sanfu Ship Engineering for four 64,500 dwt ultramax newbuilds, locking in a second leg of the Thai owner's renewal push at the Chinese yard.

The Bangkok-listed owner, led by Khalid Hashim, signed the latest quartet at $35.45m each. Deliveries are scheduled for April, July and October 2030, with the fourth hull due in January 2031.

The new ships are 1,000 dwt larger than the four 63,500 dwt ultramaxes Precious ordered at the same yard in 2024 — a batch priced at a combined $133.46m, or roughly $33.36m per hull. Two from that earlier series have already entered the fleet: the Rossarin Naree, delivered at the end of May, and the Ratima Naree, which arrived in early September. The remaining pair from the 2024 contract is due through the first quarter of 2027.

What changed in the new design?

The latest quartet runs on Sanfu's updated 64,500 dwt ultramax platform. Precious highlighted several efficiency upgrades packed into the new specification:

• Increased carrying capacity
• Upgraded propulsion system
• Shaft generator
• Revised hull form
• Additional energy-saving measures

The larger hull and revised propulsion package explain roughly $2m of the per-ship premium over the 2024 order, a price delta that points to a firmer Chinese newbuild market for dry-bulk tonnage over the past 12 months.

How does this reshape Precious's fleet?

Once the four new ships and the two outstanding 2024 hulls are delivered, Precious expects its fleet to stand at 47 ships totalling about 2.34m dwt. The order extends a renewal programme that has seen the company sell ageing handysize and supramax tonnage while building exposure to larger, more efficient ultramaxes.

That mix shift carries direct commercial weight. Ultramaxes typically earn stronger TCE returns in the larger-mineral and grain trades, and the bigger hull form widens the cargo profile Precious can compete for across mainstream dry-bulk routes. For charterers and forwarders, the additional 258,000 dwt of fleet capacity from this single order will be visible in fixture lists from the second quarter of 2030 onward.

What does the price step-up signal?

The $35.45m per-ship level is the clearest commercial data point in the deal. Chinese ultramax newbuild quotations slipped below $33m during the 2023-2024 yard-overcapacity phase; the 2026 talks between Precious and Sanfu are settling firmly above that floor. The serial ordering pattern — six ultramaxes at one yard in two years — also gives Precious leverage on build slots, design standardisation and post-delivery service.

Where does the fleet head from here?

The renewal strategy that began with the 2024 Sanfu order is now running into 2031, with deliveries spaced roughly every three months. As those new hulls enter the water and the older handysize and supramax units leave the fleet, Precious's average deadweight rises and average age falls, a trajectory that should keep the owner competitive in the dry-bulk market through the back end of the decade.