Alf Andersen-led Oslo Bulk has chartered in seven vessels in the past six months to cover its shipping needs as it sells down its fleet to take advantage of surging secondhand prices.
As such, the company is not behind the purchase of two midsize multipurpose (MPP) vessels that have been attributed to it, Andersen told TradeWinds.
Instead, the company is extending long and medium-term charters with established partners in the niche segment — including Germany's Navalis Shipping and Cyprus-based Sea Shipping — that own vessels compatible with its fleet.
TradeWinds previously reported on Oslo Bulk's sale of three 20-year-old MPP ships for impressive prices earlier this year, all to buyers who intend to use them to carry containers, including Mediterranean Shipping Co.
The Oslo Bulk fleet of MPP and general cargo ships of up to 17,500 dwt is variously listed by third-party sources, but Andersen said the company now owns about 20 ships after the recent sales, and is supplementing its fleet with tonnage from partners both on a long-term and voyage basis.
Since the sales, brokers reported that the company has picked up two 2012-built vessels from Polsteam, the 16,600-dwt Pichon and 17,000-dwt Ale (ex-Olza and Raba) in August and early December, respectively.
That could give the impression that Oslo Bulk is renewing its fleet.
But Andersen said the Pichon and Ale were actually both bought by one of Oslo Bulk's shareholders, the von Appen family of Chile, for their Singapore-based outfit Oslo Venture. Oslo Bulk only has them under technical management through its Bulkship Management subsidiary.
This is not the reason for renewing MPP fleets, Andersen said, due to surging secondhand vessel prices and uncertainty about what ships will be allowed to trade under coming rounds of environmental regulation.
"We would like to buy ships, but in this market, it's very difficult to find tonnage to buy. And for now, our contracts of affreightment are covered with our owned and chartered tonnage," he said. "Our ships are 10 years old on average, so we'll just have to see when we can start renewing."
Andersen has previously criticised ship valuations as failing to keep up with actual demand, especially in the category of MPP ships suitable for carrying containers.
At the time of its most recent sale, shipping information service VesselsValue priced the 17,500-dwt MPP ship Oslo Wave (now Skyeagle, built 2000) at $7.05m, with a scrap value of about $4m. But it sold for a hefty $12m.
Oslo Bulk trades globally but its core business — as described on its website and that of Swedish subsidiary Dalaro — is based on carrying northern European timber to North Africa, and picking up bulk cargoes from the Mediterranean for the backhaul, including gypsum from Spain.
Oslo Bulk is owned by investors including cement carrier veteran Andersen, Ultranav owners the von Appen family, the Inge Steensland shipbroking group, Norwegian shipowners and investors John Hatleskog, Thomas Korsdalen and Dag Rommen, Singaporean investor Mamta Shahani and former Dalaro owner Rickard Svenson.
