More than three years after setting up his own company, Velos Tankers, Paschalis Diamantides is taking a plunge into bulkers as well.
Ship management sources in Athens are tying him to a $22m deal for the purchase of the 77,100-dwt Nord Libra (built 2014) — a Japanese-owned ship chartered in by Norden.
Management of the vessel will be entrusted to Velos Dry, a company affiliated with Velos Tankers, which Diamantides built from scratch to its current fleet size of one aframax, five MRs and three panamax oil carriers.
Ship number 10, the Nord Libra, takes Velos in new directions but on a ground its founder is already familiar with.
Diamantides knows such ships from the time he was working as a teenager at Marmaras Navigation, the dry bulk company of his father, major shipowner Diamantis Diamantides.
The acquisition of the Nord Libra shows that Paschalis wants to be present in bulker as well as tanker markets, emulating the business model he and his co-managers became familiar with at Marmaras Navigation and affiliated tanker outfit Delta Tankers.
Starting out his independent career with tankers proved a wise move for Paschalis, whose Velos Tankers bought eight of its nine ships by October 2021, way before tanker values shot up in the wake of the Ukraine war.
His timing to expand into bulkers now appears equally well chosen. Bulker values have declined in recent months, following uncertainty over economic prospects worldwide, particularly in China.
According to sources familiar with the thinking of managers at Velos Dry, current market conditions are good for the company to grow, but the market should not expect it to make any hasty, large-scale expansion moves.
Rather, Diamantides should be expected to take careful, stable, debt-free and low-risk steps — just as Velos Tankers did.
The purchase of the Nord Libra is characteristic of the company’s attitude.
Acquired at a low price compared with what such vessels fetched just a few weeks ago, it offers several added-value elements promising profitable operations.
The Imabari-built ship is fitted with a scrubber and passed its special survey two years ago. It has an eco modern electric engine and a ballast water treatment system.
Velos Dry is expected to take delivery early next year.
