Greece's Diana Shipping Orders Two Methanol-Fuelled Bulkers

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Thursday September 28, 2023

Greece-based Diana Shipping is the latest firm to take on tonnage capable of running on methanol.

The company has signed a letter of intent with the Marubeni Corporation to order two 81,200 DWT dual-fuelled Kamsarmax dry bulk carriers capable of running on methanol, it said in a statement on its website on Wednesday.

The vessels cost $46 million each, will be built by Tsuneishi Group (Zhoushan) Shipbuilding in China and are expected to be delivered in the second half of 2027 and the first half of 2028, respectively.

"Diana Shipping Inc. takes pride in its role as an industry leader, continually striving to enhance our fleet and operations for the benefit of our stakeholders and the environment," Semiramis Paliou, CEO of Diana Shipping, said in the statement.

"This investment underscores our dedication to sustainable shipping and positions us to meet the evolving demands of our industry while reducing our carbon footprint."

Methanol is rapidly gaining in popularity as an alternative marine fuel, with orders of methanol-fuelled tonnage now coming in regularly from a variety of shipping segments. The main challenge for this market will be the scaling-up of green methanol supply in time to meet the needs of the new ships as they are delivered.

Diana Shipping's current fleet consists of 4 Newcastlemax, 10 Capesize, 5 Post-Panamax, 6 Kamsarmax, 7 Panamax and 9 Ultramax bulk carriers.