Portline Bulk International has sold two of its oldest vessels in an apparent fleet renewal move.
The Portuguese shipowner sold the 52,500-dwt Sabrina I and Florinda I (both built 2005) to an undisclosed buyer for $5m each, brokers said.
That is below the $6m estimate by VesselsValue for the Tsuneishi Heavy Industries Cebu-built ships.
Portline did not respond to requests for comments.
The vessels are among four sisterships that the Lisbon shipowner ordered in 2002 for $18.5m each.
The ships have at times been solid earners for Portline, which owned them through the booming dry bulk market that lasted until 2008.
Portline is mainly involved in the supramax and ultramax segments, with 17 ships in its fleet, which includes one capesize bulker.
The ships are on average eight years old.
Last year, it took delivery of two ultramax newbuildings from Oshima Shipbuilding and two ultramaxes from Imabari Shipbuilding.
The company used to be state-controlled but is now in private hands. Its ownership is unclear, with chief executive Cristina Alves previously denying rumours that the company was connected to Hong Kong shipowner Stanley Ho before he died in May.
Instead, she said Portline is owned by three individuals whom she identified as "prominent business people" from Hong Kong.
