Dorian LPG Orders Three Dual-Fuel VLGCs in About $345 Million Fleet Investment

Dorian LPG has ordered three 90,000-cubic-meter dual-fuel Panamax very large gas carriers from Hanwha Ocean for a combined price of about $345 million, extending a fleet-renewal program that is adding larger and more fuel-flexible ships. The vessels are scheduled for delivery in June, September and December 2030.

The headline price works out to roughly $115 million per ship. Each newbuilding will be able to operate on LPG or conventional low-sulfur fuel and will include a shaft-generator system that can produce onboard electricity while the vessel is at sea. Dorian said the hull forms and engines are also being optimized for larger-diameter propellers and energy-saving equipment around the propellers.

The company disclosed the order in a Sept. 4 press release furnished with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Dorian said the design will give charterers the flexibility to use the Panama Canal’s original locks and described the ships as part of its longer-term effort to invest in more efficient vessels. The release did not disclose payment milestones or identify a dedicated financing source for the approximately $345 million commitment.

The order extends Dorian’s fleet-renewal program

Friday’s announcement follows another 90,000-cubic-meter dual-fuel Panamax VLGC order placed earlier this year. On June 23, Dorian said it had contracted with HD Hyundai for one vessel scheduled for delivery in the third quarter of 2029 at a price of about $115 million. Its June 30 quarterly filing later listed $115.3 million of remaining contractual commitments tied to that ship.

Taken together, the June order and the three ships announced Friday carry headline contract values of roughly $460 million. The four vessels are scheduled to arrive over a period stretching from the third quarter of 2029 through the end of 2030, so the spending is spread across several years rather than falling into one reporting period. Dorian has not yet disclosed the installment schedule for the three Hanwha Ocean ships.

The expansion is occurring alongside disposals of older tonnage. In June, Dorian announced agreements to sell the 2014-built Corsair and two 2015-built VLGCs for aggregate proceeds of about $256 million. By the end of July, the company had completed sales of Corsair and Constellation, receiving net proceeds of $80.8 million and $85.6 million, respectively. The company has been using both purchases and sales to reshape the age and technology profile of its fleet.

Dorian’s fleet currently consists of 25 modern VLGCs, according to the Sept. 4 release, including six dual-fuel ECO vessels, 17 other ECO vessels and two modern VLGCs. In its latest quarterly filing, the company said the fleet had an average age of 9.4 years as of July 30. The planned 2030 deliveries therefore represent a material extension of a renewal cycle that is already replacing or supplementing ships built mainly in the mid-2010s.

Hanwha Ocean is also an existing supplier to Dorian. In March 2026, Dorian took delivery from the South Korean shipbuilder of Areion, a 93,000-cubic-meter dual-fuel LPG and ammonia carrier. Areion entered the Helios LPG Pool after delivery, giving Dorian recent operating experience with a large dual-fuel vessel built by the same yard that will construct the newly ordered ships.

Strong chartering provides a favorable operating backdrop

The new capital commitment comes while Dorian is reporting unusually strong charter coverage. In the same Sept. 4 release, the company estimated that it had fixed 99% of its calendar days for the quarter ending Sept. 30 at a rate above $88,000 per day. That estimate excludes any potential demurrage that may be earned on voyages finishing during September.

Those forward bookings follow a strong fiscal first quarter. For the three months ended June 30, Dorian reported revenue of $187.9 million and a time-charter-equivalent rate per available day of $75,926. Net income was $138.3 million, or $3.24 per diluted share, while adjusted EBITDA was $165.4 million. Management attributed part of the quarter’s strength to transportation demand associated with geopolitical disruption and said freight rates remained volatile.

The company also had $342.1 million of cash and cash equivalents at June 30. Long-term debt, net of deferred financing fees, totaled $507.5 million, including $158.7 million of principal scheduled for repayment within the following 12 months. Those figures predate the subsequent vessel-sale proceeds and the new financing facility announced this week, so they are a balance-sheet reference point rather than a current cash estimate.

Shipping newbuild programs can require substantial cash before delivery because shipyards typically collect installments as construction milestones are reached. Dorian has disclosed the payment schedule for its separate 2029 HD Hyundai vessel, but not for the three Hanwha Ocean ships. That makes the total price clear while leaving the timing of the associated cash outflows to be detailed in later filings.

A new credit facility adds capacity, but is not earmarked for the ships

Dorian also disclosed a new seven-year $368.4 million credit facility entered into on Sept. 2. The facility is intended to refinance existing indebtedness under several prior arrangements and consists of a $213.4 million term loan and a $155.1 million revolving credit facility. The borrowing margin is 140 basis points over SOFR, and the agreement includes a $200 million accordion feature that can support future growth.

The financing is relevant to Dorian’s capital position, but the company did not say that the new facility will fund the Hanwha Ocean order. Its stated purpose is refinancing existing debt, with the revolving and accordion components providing additional flexibility. Dorian’s finance chief said the facility is expected to consolidate four existing financings and lower overall interest and principal amortization per day when fully drawn.

That distinction matters because the shipbuilding commitment and the refinancing were disclosed together but serve different immediate purposes. The approximately $345 million newbuilding price represents a future fleet investment, while the new credit agreement primarily reorganizes existing borrowings. Any eventual mix of operating cash flow, sale proceeds, debt or other funding used for the three ships has not yet been specified.

The delivery sequence now gives investors a clearer timetable for the next stage of Dorian’s fleet renewal. The HD Hyundai newbuilding is due first in the third quarter of 2029. Hanwha Ocean is then scheduled to deliver the three newly ordered vessels in June, September and December 2030, adding 270,000 cubic meters of combined carrying capacity if all three ships are delivered as planned.