National Shipping Company of Saudi Arabia (Bahri) has signed a deal to buy a further five very large crude tankers from ship builder Hyundai Heavy Industries, the exclusive oil-shipper for Saudi Aramco said on Wednesday.

Hyundai agreed a contract in May to build five tankers and deliver them to Bahri in 2017. The deal included an option to buy five more, which Bahri is now taking up according to the latest announcement.

Bahri said the cost of buying the tankers would be announced at a later date, although each will have a capacity of 300,000 deadweight tonnage and would replace ships in its existing fleet.

The latest five ships will be delivered during 2017 and 2018, the statement added. -Reuters