Samsung Heavy Industries canceled delivery of the first of two crude oil tankers because the shipowner did not pay the final installment, citing the buyer’s financial difficulties in a stock exchange filing. The company said it exercised its contractual right to cancel and warned the delivery date for the second vessel may change depending on the shipowner’s circumstances.

The shipbuilder recast the canceled vessel’s contract value at about $78 million and kept the completion date set for the end of this month. Samsung Heavy Industries said advances already received are expected to cover shipbuilding costs, and it plans to sell the tanker to further offset construction expenses.

The order was reported in June 2023 as a roughly $170 million deal for two tankers from “Oceanic region shipowners,” with delivery targeted by the end of February 2026. Industry speculation has linked the ships to Teodor Shipping or Cora Lines, but Samsung Heavy Industries has denied working with a sanctioned entity.

In June 2025, U.S. authorities tied Teodor Shipping to a shipping network they said was controlled by Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani. Treasury said it listed 115 entities linked to the network, while the State Department designated 20 entities and identified 10 vessels as blocked property.

The filing made no reference to sanctions and attributed the cancellation solely to non-payment.