South Korea’s Sinokor Merchant Marine has put another of its laid-up steam turbine LNG carriers on the market for demolition offers in what looks set to be its fifth scrap sale for this type of tonnage in eight months.
Brokers reported that offers have been invited on the 125,660-cbm Baltic Energy (ex-Wilpower, built 1983) for early this week.
The 38-year-old vessel, which sailed for much of its trading history as the Bishu Maru, is shown on databases as laid-up in East Malaysia.
Sinokor was seen in the market in May asking for towage quotations on the vessel and a sistership — the 125,631-cbm Mediterranean Energy (ex-Wilgas, built 1984).
In July, brokers reported that the Mediterranean Energy had been sold for scrap.
The 32,001-ldt ship is reported to have attracted a price of $650 per ldt, or $20.8m in total, partly due to 3,500 tonnes of aluminium content.
Top ten
The Baltic Energy is listed on Clarksons’ Shipping Intelligence Network as among the nine oldest vessels in the world’s LNG fleet. Sinokor bought the ship in 2016, when it had been in lay-up since 2013.
The sale of the vessel for scrap could shrink Sinokor’s LNG fleet to 10 vessels, only two of which are trading with the rest laid-up.
Sinokor has been shedding its older laid-up LNG vessels with some regularity in the last nine months.
In December, the company sold two laid-up ships — the 135,293-cbm Pacific Energy (ex-LNG Bonny, built 1981) and 133,000-cbm Atlantic Energy (ex-LNG Finima, built 1984) — for demolition.
The company’s 126,530-cbm, Moss-type vessel Caribbean Energy (ex-Gaea, built 1980) followed.
Three LNG carriers have been sold for scrap this year following something of a bumper year in 2020 when six went to the breakers. But more are expected to head for demolition with the incoming tougher emissions regulations.
