Premuda, the Italian shipowner, is increasingly active in selling assets.
TradeWinds reported last month how a trio of Premuda vessels — two product tankers and a kamsarmax bulker — were on the way out in deals believed to have raised the company nearly $90m in total.
At least three additional bulkers and tankers owned or managed by Premuda have now been sold as well.
Managers at the company confirmed broker reports that the 34,400-dwt handysize bulker Four Aida (built 2009) and its one-year younger sister ship Four Otello were shaken out in an en-bloc deal worth $23m.
According to the Premuda website, these are among the oldest vessels in its fleet of 25 owned and managed tankers and bulkers.
The website lists the Four Aida and the Four Otello as owned by Premuda since their delivery as newbuildings from SPP Shipbuilding in South Korea.
The Four Aida passed special survey a couple of months ago. The Four Otello has to do so by next summer.
Handy tankers sold as well?
Things get more confusing with two handysize tankers linked to Premuda that have been reported sold as well.
Several brokers report that the 40,400-dwt product carrier Nina (built 2010) is changing hands for $24m — a price that includes consideration for an ongoing time charter.
Most of the reports identified Ancora Investment Trust as the buyer, but the Greek company has told TradeWinds this information is not correct.
Even if the vessel was indeed sold to different interests, it is not Premuda cashing in, as its website lists the Nina as a ship merely managed by Premuda and not owned by it.
A sister ship, the 40,400-dwt Allegra (built 2009), has been reported sold as well, at the same price and on the same conditions as the Nina.
Premuda’s website, however, does not feature the Allegra at all, either under Premuda ownership or management.
The S&P Global database shows the Allegra with Ottavio Novella — a different Italian owner.
Premuda has been acting for several years as a consolidator on the Italian shipping scene under the control of Pillarstone, the Milan-based financier that acquired Premuda’s capital in 2016 with backing from private equity player KKR.
In 2019, Pillarstone installed a new management team, led by chief executive Marco Fiori and chief financial officer Enrico Barbieri.
Under their leadership, Premuda’s fleet expanded through a string of “sale-and-purchase deals, refinancing arrangements, fleet integrations and corporate transactions”, as stated on its website.
Ian Lewis contributed to this article
