Newbuilding
A Newbuilding (or newbuild) is a ship built to order at a shipyard, as opposed to a second-hand vessel bought on the sale-and-purchase market. The project runs from the shipbuilding contract and classification-approved design through steel cutting, block fabrication, keel laying, erection, outfitting, launch, sea trials and final delivery to the owner.
A newbuilding programme is governed by the building contract and yard payment milestones — typically staged instalments tied to steel cutting, keel laying, launch and delivery. Owner supervision teams and class surveyors monitor construction against the approved plans and the shipbuilding standards throughout.
A newbuilding locks in the design, fuel technology and capital cost that a shipowner lives with for 20 to 30 years. Slippage against the milestone schedule ties up instalment payments and delays the first earning voyage, so tight control of design, procurement and yard progress is what protects the return on a very large capital commitment.
What are the main milestones of a newbuilding?
The standard contract milestones are steel cutting, keel laying, launch (or float-out) and delivery — each usually triggering a staged payment instalment.
How long does it take to build a ship?
Typically 12 to 36 months from contract to delivery depending on ship type, size and yard workload — a large tanker or container ship is usually around 18 to 24 months in build.