Greek players have been involved in all three big kamsarmax transactions in the secondhand market this year — and they have been active on both sides of the sale-and-purchase fence.
In an all-Greek deal, market sources identified Modion Maritime as the new owner of Kassian Maritime’s 81,500-dwt Super Luna (built 2016).
The ship, built at China’s Jinhai Heavy Industry, is said to be changing hands for $22.6m.
Neither Modion nor Kassian responded to a request for comment.
Myron Tsatsakis-led Modion is known to be in an expansion mood.
The Athens company took delivery a few weeks ago of a similar vessel purchased on the secondhand market — the 77,200-dwt Sunny Eternity (renamed Christina V, built 2014).
Brokers reported the Oshima Shipbuilding-built panamax as sold in late July by Japan’s Noma Kaiun to undisclosed buyers for between $20m and $20.5m.
The purchases suggest that Modion — a panamax-to-post-panamax specialist with 13 ships on the water — is sanguine about the market’s prospects and is increasing its fleet to bet on it.
The sellers of the Super Luna, by contrast, are moving in the opposite direction, decreasing their exposure.
This is Kassian Maritime’s third sale since November.
The other two sales concerned a pair of Mitsui-built capesizes: the 177,500-dwt The Mothership (renamed Leone Star, built 2006), which was sold to Chinese for about $17.3m; and 177,500-dwt Satori (renamed SSI Brave, built 2007), which was bought by Dubai-based Densay Shipping for about $18.5m.
The three sales have left Kassian with five bulkers on the water. The Pappadakis family-controlled company is not listed with any newbuildings.
Unlike Kassian, another Greek company divesting panamaxes and kamsarmaxes is doing so to renew its fleet.
Panos Laskaridis-controlled Lavinia Bulk is selling to the Chinese the 82,000-dwt Artemis (built 2013), with ship management sources putting a price tag of about $19.5m on the deal.
Lavinia sold another pair of ships as recently as November, as TradeWinds already reported — the 75,000-dwt panamaxes Lambay and Nestor (both built 2011), which went to the Stefanou brothers of Piraeus for $16.2m each.
The Lambay is already trading with Stefanou company Bright Navigation as Charilaos S, while the Nestor has been renamed Dikefalos S.
Lavinia is compensating for these outgoing ships by ordering a quartet of kamsarmaxes in China, which are due to deliver in 2025 and early 2026. As TradeWinds reported, these are Panos Laskaridis’ first newbuildings in more than five years.
Another as yet unidentified Greek player is said to be increasing its exposure to kamsarmaxes with the purchase of Tomini Shipping’s 81,000-dwt Tomini Bravery (built 2015).
The Jiangsu Jinling-built vessel is changing hands for about $24.5m, according to brokers.
This is a high price, which may be partly explained by the fact that it is said to include forgone revenue from an ongoing time charter through to May.
Tomini does not discuss commercial transactions.
The United Arab Emirates-based company last year sold to Greek players a pair of handysize bulkers of around the same age as the Tomini Bravery: the 37,900-dwt Tomini Ghibli (renamed Rooster, built 2016) to Greece’s Goldenport; and 38,000-dwt Tomini Bora (renamed Gant Nerea, built 2016) to Anthony Giavridis Maritime.
In exchange, Tomini added younger ultramaxes and bigger capesizes to its fleet.
