In mid-November last year, Japanese shipping company Nisshin Shipping sold three 84,000 dwt Panamax bulk carriers to Greek shipping company Transmed Shipping for USD 16.75 million each. Then in the following month, Nisshin Shipping sold off their Panamax bulk carrier to an unknown buyer from Greece. The 82,700 dwt ship, previously known as Nord Hercules, was acquired by Nissin for USD 10.8 million. Now known as the Epson Trader, it has a current market value of USD 10.05 million. Featuring a length of 229 meters and a width of 32.3 meters, the bulker was built by Japan-based shipbuilder Tadotsu Tsuneishi in 2007. Nisshin Shipping’s fleet is currently comprised of 61 vessels with a total size of more than 4 million dwt.

Most recently, Nisshin has been linked to an order for up to seven 82,000 DWT bulkers at China’s Jiangsu Hantong Ship Heavy Industries. The fleet modernization deal dated last week, comprises of five firm orders plus two options. The five firm orders are Panamax bulkers, valued at USD 24 million a piece, and scheduled for delivery in 2018, while the optional units would be handed over in 2019. Including the latest order, the company has 16 newbuilds on order: five chemical tankers at compatriot Usuki Zosensho, four LR1 tankers at Korea’s Sungdong Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering, and two more bulkers at China’s Jiangsu Hantong and Jiangmen Nanyang, respectively. Out of the total aforementioned, six ships are to join Nisshin’s fleet by the end of this year.