Throughout the summer and well into September, observers have been describing the demolition market in downcast terms as “subdued”, “challenging”, “soft” or “under pressure”.
Never too late to catch up on a trend, Greek owners sold just six ships for scrap between the end of May and late September, highlighting the dire state the demolition market was in.
Two tankers previously owned by Greeks, however, have been reported sold over the past 10 days, offering tentative signs that the scene is coming back to life.
Polys Haji-Ioannou company World Tankers sold the 44,400-dwt tanker Akrotiri (built 1994) to a Bangladeshi buyer late last month, at undisclosed terms.
Bangladeshi interests also bought a similar ship late last week, with some Greek brokers reporting that the 41,600-dwt tanker Ursus (built 1988) fetched $393 per ldt or close to $3.2m in total.
Data gleaned from vessel trackers seems to corroborate the information. Recently renamed Ursu and reflagged into the registry of Palau, the ship is heading to Chittagong under the control of Novatic Trading FZE, a cash buyer based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Broker reports and data on Equasis suggest that FZE Emirates bought the ship from Greece’s Altomare in March this year. The fact that the cash buyer is selling it now suggests that the bogged-down demolition market might be moving again.
Old MR2s, such as the Ursus and the Akrotiri, which are likely to become obsolete when IMO 2020 regulations kick in, have monopolised Greeks’ rare demolition activity in recent months.
Low-profile Greek player Unibros scrapped a pair of MR2s in India during the summer: the 45,700-dwt Oceana (built 1996) and 46,000-dwt Alizea (built 1995).
Despite these green shoots, however, analysts are reluctant to talk about a rebound. “More sales need to be concluded before it is possible to determine the true indicative rates and exact position of the market,” Clarksons said in its weekly report on 4 October.
Greek dry bulk demolition deals, have been even rarer. Angelicoussis company Maran Dry shed two old newcastlemaxes over the summer that eventually ended up in the scrapyard, as TradeWinds reported two months ago.
Owner Lou Kollakis, meanwhile, followed up on his slow but steady campaign to offload ageing reefer ships. His company Chartworld reportedly sold the 14,000-dwt Autumn Reefer (built 1993) and the 13,000-dwt Swan Chacabuco (built 1990).
