The actual buyer of the two crude oil carriers worth 290 billion won that Samsung Heavy Industries recently won from a shipowner in Bermuda, a British overseas territory, has been identified as U.S. investment bank JP Morgan.
As carbon emission rules tighten, demand is rising for eco-friendly ships and for replacing aging vessels, prompting ship investments by global financial firms such as JP Morgan. Asset managers are creating funds to secure ships and then leasing them long-term to companies that actually operate the vessels to earn revenue.
According to the shipbuilding industry on the 10th, Samsung Heavy Industries signed a contract on the 7th to build two crude oil carriers with a Bermuda-based shipping company. They are Suezmax crude oil carriers with a capacity of 157,000 DWT (deadweight tonnage). The contract amount is 284.9 billion won ($185.99 million).
According to foreign media reports, including shipbuilding and shipping trade outlet Tradewinds, the Bermuda shipping company is known to be an affiliate of JP Morgan. Samsung Heavy Industries said it was "difficult to disclose the counterparty to the contract."
JP Morgan purchases vessels through a special purpose company (SPC) established in Bermuda and earns revenue by leasing the ships long-term to energy corporations and others. Bermuda is a representative flag of convenience where registering foreign ships is easy.
Samsung Heavy Industries disclosed that it has won 14 vessels through seven orders from a Bermuda shipping company so far this year. They include seven crude oil carriers, three liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, and four very large gas carriers (VLGC), totaling 2.756 trillion won. The shipbuilding industry assumes the Bermuda orders are from JP Morgan.
JP Morgan is a heavyweight that manages more than 150 ships as investment assets. Adrian Dashti, head of the Global Transportation Group at JP Morgan Asset Management, said at a forum during Posidonia 2026, the world's largest shipbuilding and shipping exhibition held in Athens, Greece, in late May, "Over the past six months, we have ordered more than 30 oil tankers and gas carriers, with contract amounts exceeding $3 billion (about 4.5 trillion won)."
Considering additional orders in June and July, JP Morgan's ship orders this year are estimated to be larger. Dashti said, "Demand is strong from charterers (companies that rent ships) who want new ships with higher fuel efficiency than secondhand vessels."
JP Morgan is splitting orders between shipyards in Korea and China. In April, it placed an order with Dalian Shipbuilding, under state-owned China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), for four very large crude carriers (VLCC) of 307,000 DWT (including options for two more). The vessels are scheduled for delivery in 2029. This is JP Morgan's first VLCC newbuilding order.
The shipbuilding industry views JP Morgan's aggressive increase in new ship investments this year as a move that takes into account the International Maritime Organization (IMO)'s reinforced carbon emission rules. The ships JP Morgan recently ordered are slated for delivery in 2028–2029. This aligns with 2030, when the IMO mandates at least a 20% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared with 2008 and requires at least 5% of maritime energy to be replaced with zero-carbon eco-friendly fuels. Recent orders for ships using eco-friendly fuels are aiming at this timeline.
A shipbuilding industry official said, "Investment capital locking in shipyard berths (spaces for building ships) signals a positive outlook for market conditions at the time of delivery and an expectation that asset values will rise."
In May, British alternative investment manager Hayfin Capital Management ordered two LNG carriers worth 740 billion won from HD Hyundai Heavy Industries. Hayfin also ordered four 50,000 DWT MR2 product carriers from HD Hyundai Mipo in March.
Private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) ordered four dual-fuel LNG carriers from HD Hyundai Heavy Industries in March through Ocean Yield, its dedicated ship investment platform. It is known to have prearranged a long-term charter with U.S. gas exporter Cheniere.