Delta Tankers and Eurotankers have offloaded five oil carriers to interests in Indonesia and the Middle East, bringing the number of aframaxes sold by Greeks over the past few months to a dozen.
They join other major shipowners such as Minerva Marine and Eastern Mediterranean (Eastmed), which concluded such deals after the market outlook for tankers worsened in the wake of the coronavirus upheaval.
In the latest transaction to emerge, managers at Diamantis Diamantides-led Delta confirmed the shipowner sold the 112,000-dwt Pelagos (built 2005) for $14.8m.
This is an identical sistership to the Deep Blue, which Delta sold recently at the same price to Indonesia’s Waruna Nusa Sentana. IHS Markit shows the same Indonesian buyers were also behind the Pelagos deal.
Both ships were among the oldest aframaxes in Delta’s fleet.
Eastmed, which already shed two aframaxes earlier this year, may be about to offload a third.
The 105,400-dwt Ioannis (renamed Ioann, built 1999) — a sale candidate since June — has changed its flag, its name and its technical management company. These moves suggest that an ownership change has already happened or is imminent.
That came after the company sold the 105,500-dwt Super Lady (built 2000) and the 105,500-dwt Seadance (built 1999).
Buyers in Asia
Almost all the aframaxes sold by Greeks in the past few months have gone to Asian buyers. Minerva Marine has offloaded vessels to Vietnamese interests, while Delta’s ships went to Indonesian companies. Eastmed has found buyers in the Middle East and China to pick up its vessels.
However, not all these sales are meant to reduce Greek exposure to the sector.
Some are fleet renewals: Minerva Marine is awaiting delivery next year of two aframax newbuildings from Daehan Shipbuilding.
In April, Eurotankers spent about $32m to buy the 105,000-dwt Nanyang Star (built 2012), which has been renamed Eurostrength.
The Gotsis family-led company recouped that money by selling three older crude tankers early in the summer, in deals that escaped brokers' attention. They were the 100,000-dwt tanker Europride (renamed Almada, built 1998); the 104,600-dwt Europrogress (renamed Alsatayir, built 2006); and the 81,400-dwt Eurosea (renamed Alasfal, built 2001).
Equasis shows all three ships are trading under management of Muhit Maritime FZE, a company established last year in the Jebel Ali free zone in the United Arab Emirates.
According to data compiled by TradeWinds, six different Greek companies have sold 12 aframaxes on the secondhand market since June, raising about $150m in the process.
The busiest seller has been Minerva Marine, which shed four such ships. Eurotankers, Eastmed, Atlas Maritime and Delta sold two each.
The count may rise even further: Eastmed may have already divested the Ioannis; Delta's fleet still includes four aframaxes of the same age as the pair of tankers the company recently sold to Waruna; and Minerva Marine is known to have another aframax circulating for sale, the 105,800-dwt Minerva Concert (built 2003).
