Tokyo-based Nisshin Shipping is making a comeback in the MR tanker segment after exiting the business some seven years ago — splashing out up to $72m on a pair of 50,000-dwt product carrier newbuildings.

Shipbuilding sources familiar with the deal said Nisshin has contracted South Korea’s Hyundai Mipo Dockyard (HMD) to build the vessels, with delivery slated for the end of next year.