Finnish shipping company Langh Ship has placed an order for three 7,800 dwt multipurpose dry cargo ships (MPP).

In addition, Langh Ship has signed a long-term charter contract with Finnish steel maker Outokumpu for vessels to operate on the short sea route between Finland and mainland Europe.

The new buildings will be built at the Wuhu Shipyard in China, with delivery of the first ship scheduled for mid-2023.

The two remaining ships will be handed over shortly thereafter.

Ice Class 1A ships will transport semi-finished and finished steel products to customers.

The new construction return will be equipped with steel scrap, which is the main raw material for Outokumpu stainless steel.

Langh Ship worked on the ship design in partnership with Outokumpu and the China-based ship designer Shanghai Merchant Ship Design and Research Institute (SDARI).

The ships were designed to support the transport of steel, but will also be able to function as multi-purpose ships to carry different cargoes depending on Outokumpu’s needs.

In addition, they will be built to meet Outokumpu’s sustainability goals and meet future environmental regulations.

Equipped with dual-fuel engines, ships will have the ability to run on different fuels and be modified for future thrusters.

In a statement, Langh Ship said: “As the initial fuel they will use liquefied natural gas (LNG), which can be directly replaced by liquefied biogas (LBG). The ship’s LNG tank is ready for both methanol and ammonia. In addition, the ships are prepared for the installation of a shore power supply, which would make them emission-free during stopovers.

New constructions will also have space reserved for the deployment of batteries to enable hybrid solutions.

In addition, they will include Langh Tech’s new ballast water management system.

In 2019, Langh Tech entered into an agreement with STX Offshore and Shipbuilding for the delivery and modernization of sewage treatment systems on seven vessels operated by Polaris Shipping.