Rio Tinto and BHP Agree to Explore Major Iron Ore Collaboration in Pilbara 
BYD Shares Rise in Hong Kong on Reports of Battery Supply Talks With Ford 
Anthropic Appoints Former Microsoft Executive Irina Ghose to Lead India Expansion 
Toyota Industries Buyout Faces Resistance as Elliott Rejects Higher Offer 
China’s AI Models Narrow the Gap With the West, Says Google DeepMind CEO 
Boeing Reaches Tentative Labor Deal With SPEEA Workers After Spirit AeroSystems Acquisition 
U.S. Transportation Board Sends Union Pacific–Norfolk Southern Merger Back for Revision 
U.S. Lawmakers Raise Alarm Over Trump Approval of Nvidia AI Chip Sales to China 
xAI Restricts Grok Image Editing After Sexualized AI Images Trigger Global Scrutiny 
U.S. Moves to Expand Chevron License and Control Venezuelan Oil Sales 
Taiwan Issues Arrest Warrant for OnePlus CEO Over Alleged Illegal Recruitment Activities 
Google Seeks Delay on Data-Sharing Order as It Appeals Landmark Antitrust Ruling 
Publishers Seek to Join Lawsuit Against Google Over Alleged AI Copyright Infringement 
China Halts Shipments of Nvidia H200 AI Chips, Forcing Suppliers to Pause Production 
Microsoft Strikes Landmark Soil Carbon Credit Deal With Indigo Carbon to Boost Carbon-Negative Goal 
Chevron Set to Expand Venezuela Operations as U.S. Signals Shift on Oil Sanctions 
China Considers New Rules to Limit Purchases of Foreign AI Chips Amid Growing Demand 
Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) inked a $2.5 billion deal from European shipowners to supply blocks and equipment for ships, marking its largest single order since its establishment in 1974.
The contract is equivalent to 38.2 percent of last year’s total sales.
It had an accumulated earnings total of $3.8 billion this year, satisfying 45 percent of this year’s order target.
The latest deal brought SHI’s order backlog to over $20 billion in five months.
Industry watchers say the contract is highly likely related to Arctic LNG 2, a mega-sized gas field that Russia is developing to produce 19.8 million tons of LNG per year by 2025.
SHI was selected in September last year to be the technology partner for the Arctic LNG 2 project's icebreaking LNG carrier, leading to a design contract with Zvezda shipyard in Russia.
The South Korean shipbuilder also signed a joint construction contract for five icebreaking LNG carriers in November last year.
SHI also expects to win deals for large-scale LNG projects from Mozambique and Qatar, while anticipating additional orders for container ships and crude oil carriers.
South Korean shipbuilders are performing soundly this year despite the pandemic, with Korea Shipbuilding and Offshore Engineering and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering achieving 57.3 percent and 52 percent of this year’s target orders.
