Two aframax tankers controlled by low-key tanker managers based in Dubai were reported as sold for recycling over the past week.
The pair were among five ships sold over the past week to cash buyers, or in the case of an MSC Mediterranean Shipping Co container ship, directly to a Hong Kong Convention-certified recycling facility at Alang.
The 106,000-dwt crude carrier Bradley (built 1999), a vessel managed by Global Tech Marine Services of Dubai, was reported to have been sold on an as-is basis in Singapore for $500 per ldt, or $8.2m.
S&P Global data shows the Bradley as being owned by Hallbar Ltd — a British Virgin Islands-registered single-ship entity —since August 2021. The vessel has had three different names and owners and five different managers since being sold by an offshoot of Sovcomflot in December 2018.
The second aframax reported sold for recycling was the 105,000-dwt Gulf Venture (built 1999), which also went for $500 per ldt on an as-is basis in Singapore, or $8.4m.
TradeWinds was unable to find any reference to a vessel named Gulf Venture in shipping registers. However, the IMO number for the Gulf Venture listed on vessel tracking website Marine Traffic is the same as the tanker Leviathan — a vessel last listed as been owned by Leviathan Shipping Corp, which is a single-ship company registered in the Marshall Islands and operated by Breeze Marine Services of Dubai.
Details for the Leviathan’s listing in S&P Global International Ships Register exactly matched the specifications listed for the Gulf Venture when it circulated for recycling sale.
It is unclear whether the Leviathan moved on a new owner and manager when it was renamed Gulf Venture. The ship has had multiple owners, names and managers since being sold by a Norwegian investment fund in 2019.
Market sources believe the Bradley and Gulf Venture will be recycled in India, which is currently in the lead in terms of pricing and ability to finance acquisitions as compared to neighbouring Pakistan and Bangladesh.
Neither Global Tech Marine nor Breeze Marine could be reached at the phone numbers listed for them in shipping databases.
Confirmed as heading to a Hong Kong Convention-certified recycling facility is MSC’s 2,078-teu container ship MSC Jasmine (built 1988), which arrived off Alang on Sunday 1 October.
The ship was reported sold for $580 per ldt, or $8.3m in a deal that included 650 tons of bunker fuel remaining on board.
Cash buyers were said to have acquired the Piraeus-based Delek Transport's panamax bulker Tycoon (built 2000), which was sold at $570 per ldt, or $7.2m. The deal includes the option to recycle the ship in India or Pakistan.
Another panamax bulker, Cosco Shipping’s 63,000-dwt Ya Tai 1 (built 1995), was sold to cash buyers on an as-is basis in Guangzhou for $475 per ldt, or $4.9m. No recycling destination has been nominated as of now.
GMS said in its latest market report that the Indian recyclers continue to offer about $20 per ldt above Pakistan and $60 per ldt above Bangladesh. The cash buyer said India’s price offerings are expected to remain firm in the forthcoming weeks.
