Azerbaijani state energy company Socar is said to be spending $120m on a trio of large product carriers owned by Okeanis Eco Tankers (OET).
London and US-based brokers have reported Oslo-listed OET as selling the 114,300-dwt sisterships Nissos Therassia, Nissos Heraclea and Nissos Schinoussa (all built 2015) at $40m apiece.
Socar and OET were not available for comment.
Greek-controlled OET has never made a secret of its intention to offload the ships, in a move that would leave it as a pure-play owner of a younger fleet of eight VLCCs and six suezmaxes.
In a conference call with analysts in February, management reiterated that the company was interested in selling the three vessels and that it had been looking “for the right opportunity” to do so.
That opportunity may now have come, amid a reanimated secondhand tanker market that has seen asset values climbing, despite lacklustre earnings.
Ahead of the curve
“Many buyers are now trying to position themselves in front of competition before any anticipated market upturn,” analysts at Athens' Allied Research said in their latest client note.
“Keen sellers are also growing, as a result of accumulated low earnings.”
Average prices for coated five-year-old LR2s jumped in the week to 16 April to a 10-month high of $42m, according to Clarksons, from $39m a week before.
That was the biggest week-on-week rise since January 2015.
Socar has been active in the secondhand market over the past few months, but only as a seller so far. It offloaded a string of old tankers in deals that now appear to have been part of a wider fleet renewal strategy.
Bullish trend
The Baku-based company has sold three suezmaxes and two aframaxes built in 2002 and 2003 since last November, raising between $55m and $60m.
In another notable LR2 deal on 16 April that confirms the increasingly bullish trend in the secondhand tanker market, Japan’s NYK Line is said by brokers to have been “besieged with buying interest” for the 115,100-dwt Champion Prosperity (built 2009).
Greek buyers, possibly Chartworld Shipping, are said to have put in the highest bid for the Sasebo Heavy Industries-built vessel, which fetched $19.8m.
In another reported LR2 deal, major Greek owner Thenamaris is said to have spent $17.2m for the 108,900-dwt Ocean Voyager (built 2009) — one of several vessels sold by Singapore’s Xihe Group.
