GriegMaas, the bulker company set up by Grieg Star and Maas Capital in January 2019, is looking to cash in on one of its six vessels amid a strong dry bulk sale-and-purchase market.
Brokers said the the 58,000-dwt Star Eracle (built 2012), which is discharging in Kandla, India, now is a sales candidate. The ship was constructed at Dayang Shipbuilding.
The Star Eracle is expected to fetch about $16m.
GriegMaas has declared a strategy focused on growth but may have been tempted by rising prices in the secondhand bulker market.
Grieg Star chief executive Matt Duke said the effort to sell is a joint move by both partners in the shipowning company.
His company has a fleet of 28 open hatch bulkers, in addition to the six conventional supramax and ultramax bulkers built at Dayang.
Duke said: "While we have a long-term industrial approach to out open-hatch activities, we have always had a more opportunistic approach to conventional bulk. With the latest development in the secondhand market, we [are exploring] the market for Star Eracle."
GriegMaas' initial fleet consisted of the Star Eracle and the sistership Star Athena (built 2012).
Chaired by Camilla Grieg, Grieg Star is part of the Grieg Group.
When the joint venture was founded was founded, she said that the new venture would "further strengthen our position within the supramax and ultramax segments and thus further strengthen G2 Ocean's bulk activities".
G2 Ocean is a joint venture between Grieg Star and Bergen-based Gearbulk.
