SAIC Anji Logistics, the logistics arm of the state-owned automotive company SAIC Motor, has recently issued an international tender for the construction of two new dual-fuel tankers with a capacity of 11,000 CEU (Car Equivalent Unit). This move aims to enhance the transportation capacity of the company's vehicle fleet.
Tender Dates and Conditions
The deadline for submitting proposals for this tender is set for October 15, 2023, and the project financing has already been secured. The first tanker is expected to be added to the fleet before September 2029, with the second tanker to be delivered within a maximum of three months thereafter.
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Contractor Selection Criteria
SAIC Anji has set stringent criteria for selecting contractors. Builders wishing to participate in this tender must demonstrate that they have delivered at least 10 dual-fuel tankers larger than 7,000 CEU from January 2023 to the end of August 2023. These criteria significantly narrow the pool of potential contractors.
Local shipbuilding industry officials have described this tender as the first investment by a Chinese company in the construction of tankers with a capacity exceeding 10,000 CEU. The new tankers will also become the largest tankers in the SAIC Anji fleet.
In 2023, SAIC Anji ordered seven tankers with a capacity of 8,900 CEU from China Merchants Jinling and Jiangnan Shipyard. This move is aimed at securing transportation capacity for Chinese automakers. Last year, the company acquired the 9,500 CEU tanker named Anji Ansheng, which was temporarily the largest tanker in the world by capacity.
The fleet capacity expansion continues, and in April 2026, Jiangnan added the 9,500 CEU Anji Jisheng tanker to the fleet, which was the third vessel in a series of three ready for methanol. With the arrival of this tanker, the number of self-propelled vessels in SAIC Anji exceeded 40.
The proposed new tankers will utilize a dual-fuel LNG propulsion system instead of methanol, giving SAIC a measurement range that includes only a few other current programs. This move comes at a time when the shortage of car carrier tanker capacity is significantly felt in the short term due to the boom in Chinese exports.
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