India’s Shreyas Shipping & Logistics (SSL) has expanded its fleet with the acquisition of three container vessels for prices well below last year’s peak.
The subsidiary of Dubai-based Transworld Group said the deals had been completed within a week, with the ships to be used in the Indian coastal trades.
The SSL Godavari is the former 2,872-teu sub-panamax Windermere (built 2010), bought from Lomar Shipping.
The 962-teu Sky Pride (built 2005) has been renamed SSL Thamirabarani and the 2,553-teu TS Manila (built 2007), meanwhile, is now the SSL Kaveri.
Shreyas said the purchases make the company “the national leader in the Indian containerised shipping industry with 12 feeder vessels with a total capacity of 26,085 teu”.
No prices were disclosed.
But brokers said the Windermere went for $17m with a special survey due, against a value of $53m at the peak of record markets in April 2022, according to VesselsValue.
Shreyas was said to have paid $8.5m, with a dry-docking due, for the SLL Thamirabarani to South Korea’s CK Line.
The feeder ship was worth $20m at the peak in February.
The SSL Kaveri’s price is not known, but it was worth $57m at the top of the market last year, while VesselsValue assesses it at $15.6m now.
The seller was TS Lines of Taiwan.
Growing demand in coastal trades
"The addition of these vessels to Shreyas Shipping’s fleet will enhance the company's capacity to meet the growing demand for shipping and logistics services in the coastal Indian trade," the owner added.
“The company already has a strong presence in this region, with operations on east and west coasts of India, and neighboring countries, among other locations,” Shreyas said.
The operator is listed with eight other owned container vessels, plus two bulkers and an MPP.
Dubai-based Transworld last year made a move into tankers with a double purchase of LR1 ships.
The latest diversification involved two 74,000-dwt clean carriers renamed as TTC Vidyut and TTC Shakti.
