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Iran to add 10 ships to fleet, including four 14,000-TEUers

FOUR 14,500-TEU ships will join Iran's shipping fleet this year, reports New York's Maritime Logistics Professional.

With the arrival of these vessels, the rank of the national shipping fleet in the world will rise to 16 from 20, said Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) chairman Mohammad Saeedi.

The report by the Fars news agency did not specify the type of the vessels but they are most likely Triple E ships which Iran has already ordered as part of a plan to expand its shipping fleet.

Xinhua reported that South Korea's Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) will deliver 10 commercial ships to Iran in March 2018.

Mr Saeedi said that the first delivery of the ordered ships will take place in March 2018, and the remaining nine vessels will be delivered to Iran every 45 days.

Mohammad was also quoted by Tehran's Financial Tribune daily as saying that four of these vessels will be container ships with a capacity of over 14,500 TEU.

The IRISL's fleet currently includes 150 commercial vessels carrying 5.2 million tons of goods annually.

South Korean shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries signed a US$700 million contract in December 2016 with IRISL to build 10 ships for Iran's state-owned shipping company.

Under the contract, which was the first shipbuilding order by Iran since the lifting of sanctions, the company will build containerships and tankers for Iran Shipping Lines, with delivery starting in 2018.