Norden has confirmed the sale of two capesize bulkers, signed deals to lease a pair of newbuildings and declared purchase options on five other vessels.
It will lease a capesize and a handysize that will be built in Japan for delivery in 2028.
Neither the lessor nor the shipyard was disclosed.
Henrik Lykkegaard Madsen, Norden’s head of asset management, said: “By leasing newbuildings, we position ourselves advantageously against the backdrop of an ageing global fleet and the lowest orderbook in decades.
“With tight shipyard availability anticipated in the coming years, newbuilding prices and forward charter rates in the dry cargo sector are expected to remain robust.”
The newbuildings will have “state-of-the-art designs and the best available fuel performance”, Norden said.
The Danish owner-operator has also exercised five purchase options on one handysize bulker and five MR product tankers at “below current market asset prices”.
The five ships, for which no further details were disclosed, will join its owned fleet in the first half of next year.
Norden also confirmed the sale of the 179,000-dwt capesizes Nord Energy and Nord Power (both built 2012).
The buyer was London-based alternative financier Hayfin Capital Management, which spent just over $62m on the pair, as TradeWinds reported in November.
“This is a strategic sale of existing, older dry cargo vessels to realise NAV [net asset value] and maximise returns at a time when second-hand capesize asset prices are at elevated levels,” Norden said on Tuesday.
Once the sales and purchases are delivered, Norden’s fleet will consist of 17 owned vessels and 79 long-term leases with purchase options, of which 43 can be declared before the end of 2025.
