Bahri Commissions Three VLCCs From IMI for SAR1.69 Billion as Q3 Profit Surges

Bahri commissioned three very large crude carriers from International Maritime Industries for SAR1.69 billion, with the ships due in batches in 2029 and 2030, Argaam reported on November 11, 2026. The Saudi shipping group also posted a third-quarter net profit of SAR5.09 billion, almost ten times the SAR513 million of a year earlier.

Bahri's Supertanker Order at Ras Al-Khair

Bahri is the National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia, a Riyadh-based maritime group that operates the world's largest VLCC fleet, with 50 vessels, alongside chemical tankers, dry bulk and logistics. The three new supertankers will be built at IMI's shipyard at Ras Al-Khair. Each can carry about two million barrels of crude, a capacity the industry rates at 320,000 deadweight tonnes.

The contract works out at about $150 million a ship, against broker benchmarks of $131.5 million from Clarksons and $135 million from Braemar for a standard new VLCC. Allied puts the extra cost of ships that can also burn liquefied natural gas at $19 million to $20 million, which lifts the benchmark to $150.5 million to $155 million. Bahri's disclosure says the ships will feature "energy-efficiency technologies" but does not state which fuel they will use.

With this order, Bahri has nine vessels on order from a Saudi yard. Bahri also owns 19.9% of IMI. The ships will not start earning until 2029 and 2030, and no charter has been announced for them.

Bahri's Record Profit and Order Book

According to akta.pro company records, Bahri reported record full-year 2025 revenue of $10.35 billion and record net profit of $2.43 billion. Its first-quarter 2026 net profit was SAR2.15 billion, up 303% year on year. The same records list a February 2026 plan to build 20 to 30 new LNG tankers as owner Aramco ramps up natural gas production, and an October 2025 order for six dry bulk carriers from IMI.

Freight Rates and Earlier Bahri Orders

VLCC shipping rates surpassed $1 million per day in September 2026, with the TD3C route reaching $1.035 million on September 14 and $1.2 million on September 18, Argaam reported. In October 2026, TradeWinds reported that Bahri pays into the Worldscale 900 range for VLCC deals moving oil from the Yanbu port. Bahri's earlier order at IMI, six bulk carriers signed in October 2025 for SAR762 million, came to about $33.9 million a ship, against a Clarksons price of about $33.25 million for that class.

What to Watch on Bahri's Newbuilds

Bahri has not disclosed the ships' fuel type, any charter or the payment schedule. By mid-2026, VLCCs on order worldwide equalled about a third of the existing fleet, up from 12% a year earlier.