Nordic American Tankers Limited (NAT) has entered into a preliminary agreement with Korean yard Sungdong Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., Ltd., to build two Suezmax tankers of 158,000 DWTs.

The newbuilds are slated for delivery to NAT in the third quarter of 2016 and the first quarter of 2017 respectively.

NAT said that the purchase price of the two newbuilding vessels was in the region of US$65 million each, which is expected to be financed by the company’s resources.

“This is an important step forward for Nordic American,” said Herbjørn Hansson, NAT’s Chairman & CEO.“By adding two more ships, we increase the dividend capacity and bolster our earnings potential. We believe that our solid balance sheet as well as our well-defined and transparent operating model are elements supporting the competitive position of the company.”

The latest order will see NAT’s tanker increase to 24 vessels.