Devbulk, an Istanbul-based fan of geared handysize tonnage, has expanded its fleet for a second time in three months with the acquisition of a ship from a low-profile player based in Switzerland.
Maestro Shipping, a company set up by Jorgen Dannesboe in 2005, has agreed to part with the 36,900-dwt Maestro Pearl (built 2015), according to market sources.
The ship changed hands in a private deal for $22.5m, a price above the $20.5m indicated by brokers when they first reported about a sale of the ship last month.
The Maestro Pearl will henceforth trade with its new Turkish owners as Devbulk Damla.
The Japanese-built ship will become the youngest and biggest handysize in Devbulk’s fleet of 10 vessels, which includes one panamax.
Devbulk, a midsize company led by brothers Hakki and Orhan Deval, used to regard a size of 10 vessels as something of a natural growth barrier.
The company’s fleet had briefly shrunk below that size last year when Devbulk shook off two of its older ships.
Having replaced outgoing tonnage with younger vessels and with bulker market prospects improving, Devbulk is now tempted to expand beyond the size limits it had previously imposed on itself.
Sources familiar with the company suggest that it might be willing to buy as many as two more vessels this year and continue at about the same pace in 2024.
Its first expansion move took place in late December, when Devbulk agreed to acquire the 35,300-dwt Kirishima Sky (built 2014), as TradeWinds reported.
The Minami Nippon-built vessel has just been delivered to the company and is now trading as Devbulk Cansen.
Maestro Shipping, the seller of Devbulk’s new acquisition, is based in Fribourg, Switzerland.
According to its website, the company owns one ro-ro and three bulk carriers. Maestro Shipping occasionally charters in tonnage as well, depending on requirements.
Apart from its Swiss base, Maestro Shipping entertains a commercial office in Copenhagen and a technical office in Limassol, Cyprus.
