Greek shipping magnate Evangelos Marinakis used a star-turn appearance at Marine Money Week in New York on Tuesday to confirm a landmark order for platform supply vessels in China.
Marinakis also fired back at some implied criticism voiced a day earlier at the same conference by Tidewater chief executive Quintin Kneen, who had called the reported order for up to eight PSVs at an estimated $320m “uneconomic”.
Speaking to TradeWinds in a sideline interview and then in an on-stage discussion with US shipbroking legend Michael Tusiani, Marinakis used similar language that was both measured and delivered with a twinkle in his eye.
“I think our industry is very exciting and we enjoy it for some special reasons,” Marinakis said.
“Some people will see light in the tunnel and others will see darkness. Some of us are right and some of us are wrong.
“So this is exciting. I respect all opinions. We have our own. That means we see some light in the tunnel. I respect everyone’s opinion, but I’m glad that I have different opinions sometimes.”
Marinakis did not otherwise get into details of the order, reported by TradeWinds to be for four firm vessels with four options, and said by Kneen to have a “4+2+2” structure.
The deadweight tonnage of the diesel-electric ships is not known, nor have delivery dates been disclosed, but the company could potentially begin to take delivery from 2026.
Brokers have estimated a new PSV as costing between $40m and $50m, with the Marinakis deal possibly towards the lower end of that range due to the size of the order.
The deal at China’s Fujian Mawei Shipbuilding marks the first and biggest order of new PSVs for a decade following a prolonged slump that came to an end after the pandemic.
Low rates, high price tags and finance questions had prohibited a return to yards, but observers have been saying new orders for oil and gas support vessels have become increasingly likely in the upturn.
However, count Kneen as one who remains highly sceptical about the viability of newbuildings.
“To me, it’s uneconomic to order a new boat today. I know some ordering will happen, but I don’t think it’s going to happen like between 2009 and 2014,” he said on Monday, referencing a period of robust orders that set up a supply glut and a sector collapse.
“The boat favoured in most geographic areas costs about $65m today. The base price requires a much higher prevailing day rate than what we see today.
“I don’t see any reason to build. And I don’t think the industry benefits from newbuildings at all.”
Marinakis, whose Capital Group owns about 130 vessels ranging from tankers and bulkers to container ships and LNG carriers, clearly has a different opinion.
He has seen the light in the tunnel for the offshore service sector, and concluded that it is not an oncoming train.
