Chinese bulker owner Fujian Highton Development is pressing ahead with its fleet expansion, earmarking $65m for fresh acquisitions in the secondhand market.
The fast-growing Shanghai-listed company revealed in a stock exchange filing that it intends to deploy the capital to acquire additional bulk carriers, as it continues to scale up its owned tonnage.
Founded in 2009 with a primary focus on the supramax segment, Fujian Highton has steadily diversified into larger bulk carrier classes, including capesize tonnage, in recent years. As of year-end 2024, the company reported a fleet of more than 60 bulkers—46 of which are wholly owned—alongside three tankers.
The move comes on the heels of a year-long buying spree that saw the company spend around $230m on nine vessels.
In March, Fujian Highton acquired a quartet of bulkers built between 2013 and 2014 from ArcelorMittal Shipping for nearly $60 million. More recently, the company took delivery of the 14-year-old, supramax SFL Yukon—now renamed Xin Hai Tong 61—from SFL Corporation, and a trio of kamsarmaxes from CDB Financial Leasing.
The company has not yet disclosed details on the types or sizes of the vessels it plans to acquire with the new funding, but market observers suggest more mid-age supramax and panamax additions in the near term.
