Greek shipowner Eurotankers has offloaded an 18-year-old VLCC for demolition in a deal that has caught the recycling market by surprise.
Brokers said the company has sold the 303,000-dwt tanker Eurodestiny (built 2003) in a transaction that will see it scrapped in Pakistan.
Vessel tracking data shows that the ship is currently on its way to the ship recycling centre of Gadani, Pakistan.
The ship is younger than many scrap candidates, and pricing details for the transaction are not clear.
One shipbroking house put the price for the deal at just $400 per ldt, which would amount to just $15.9m.
But demolition market sources said the company had been seeking more than $20m for the tanker.
UK-based valuation platform VesselsValue estimates the tanker is worth as much as $24.5m in a trading deal and $17m on the demolition market. Even recent prices of around $470 per ldt would only equate to $18.7m for the tanker.
On Friday, TradeWinds reported that NYK Line of Japan fetched as much as $24.6m for a secondhand sale of the 300,000-dwt tanker Tsurumi (built 2003). The IHI-built ship reportedly went to Chinese interests.
Eurotankers did not respond to requests for comment.
The Greek company bought the tanker from Mitsui OSK Lines for $28.3m in August 2016, when the ship was the Kaminesan.
The diversified shipowner's fleet includes three VLCCs with an average age of 14 years. In July, it made a move to renew its VLCC fleet with a purchase of the 320,000-dwt Hra (built 2011) from compatriot Vanda Marine for $46m. The DSME-built tanker is now named Eurospirit.
