Glencore Grain has hired the Protefs at $6,250 a day minus a 5% commission paid to third parties for a minimum of 11 months and a maximum of 14 months.
The charter should generate $2.06m of gross revenue over the minimum scheduled period of the deal.
The charter which began on 3 April compares to a $9,000 a day rate, again minus a 5% commission, paid by Cargill from September 2012 to the end of March this year.
But the spot rate that panamaxes are currently fetching on London’s Baltic Exchange is about $4,665 a day so about a third below the Glencore deal.
Simeon Palios led Diana has ten panamaxes – half its fleet in this size category – fixed to Glencore at rates from $15,800 a day down to the new Protefs deal.
The company’s total fleet runs to 40 vessels including 12 capesizes.
