[Yonhap/March 17, 2025] Samsung Heavy Industries Co., the world's third-largest shipbuilder by orders, said Monday it has received a 1.94 trillion-won (US$1.34 billion) order to build nine shuttle tankers from a shipper based in the Oceania region.

The company said in a regulatory filing that the vessels will be delivered in phases by 2028, without disclosing the name of the client.

Shuttle tankers are specialized vessels designed to transport crude oil from offshore production facilities to onshore storage terminals.

Samsung Heavy Industries, which built South Korea's first shuttle tanker in 1995, is the global leader in this particular ship type, having secured orders for 29 shuttle tankers, or 57 percent of the global market share, in the past decade.

With the latest contract, the company has so far achieved 16.3 percent of its annual order target of $9.8 billion.

"We remain committed to achieving our order targets by focusing on high-value eco-friendly ships and floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) plants," a company official said.