Taizhou Kouan Shipbuilding turned out to have sealed a contract to build five Handysize bulkers with the US-based operator.

Interlink Maritime recently exercised five options at Taizhou Kouan and now secures 10 newbuildings of orderbook at the Chinese builder, along with five 38,800 dwt newbuildings confirmed in September, TradeWinds reported.

Industry players expect that Interlink has five more options and the previously placed 10 Handysizes are said to be slated for delivery during 2015-2016 with the rest five options to be planned for 2017 delivery.

These newbuildings are planned to be constructed based on eco-friendly 'Green Dolphin' design co-developed by Shanghai Merchant Ship Design & Research Institute (SDARI), Wartsila Ship Design and DNV GL. Its pricing is not disclosed but industry sources estimate it to be around $22-23m apiece.